A Second Chance
by Alice2795
Summary: Giotto decided to pay a visit to Cozart after he had returned to Japan after a long time. But, on his way to the Shimon Family's mansion, he came across a pair of twins, whom he had almost run over by his car. But, what he did expect from the two boys was that...they looked almost like him? Who were they? Were they related to him in some ways? Wait..there's also a girl...triplets?
1. Back to Japan

**Yayy! My first KHR fanfic. Well...I don't really know what to say. The story took place in present days where Vongola Family is not an old, ancient Mafia family. It's still a family, but...it's not old...*eek...not really good with words* Anyway...I hope you guys will enjoy it.  
**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1, Back to Japan  
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" _I love you, -chan. I promise I'll protect you forever…" He declared without any hesitation. The girl in front of him blushed slight pink; eyes widened in surprise._

" _Are you…you are being seriously, aren't you?" she uttered, still feeling a little unsure._

 _He smiled, seeing her being all embarrassed. He wrapped his arms around her petite body, pulling her into a warm embrace. "I told that I've never lied." He murmured. "There are many ways that I can prove how much I love you."_

 _Her face warmed up as she snuggled against his chest, feeling comfortable._

" _But, what about you?" He asked. "Do you feel the same way as I do?"_

 _She immediately nodded without giving a second thought. "I love you, too…Ieyasu. I love you…with all my heart."_

 _He felt his heart stopped for a moment hearing this. He couldn't help but smiled. This woman…no...this girl…he really adored her…cherished her… ever since he had first met her…._

" _Aishiteru yo, -chan…"_

 _The girl smiled, tears of joy dripped from her eyes. "Thank you, Ieyasu…Thank you for loving someone like me…" She murmured._

" _Daisuki desu…"_

* * *

Giotto's eyes slowly fluttered open as he felt his surrounding shaken a bit.

"Master Giotto, it's about time you wake up." said a stern voice from the driver's seat. "We've arrived at the mansion."

The blonde stirred and rubbed his eyes tiredly. 'That dream again, huh?' Someone opened the car's door.

"Welcome back, Young master. No…Right now…you're Master Giotto." An old man greeted politely as he bowed slightly at the man.

"Good to be back and I'm not that old to be referred as Master yet, Bob. I'm still in my mid-twenties." Giotto grinned sheepishly as he stepped out from the car. He yawned and stretched his arms. "Wahhh! It's been a long time since I've left."

"It's been such a long time indeed, Master. By the way, may I ask where the others Masters are?" the man asked as he closed the door.

"Hmm? Oh…if you're talking about G and the rest, they're back at their homes to pack their things." Giotto replied as the two began to entered the large Grande door and into the mansion. "They're going to be living here with the rest of their family after all."

"I see…" was the butler's response. They strolled down the hall and headed into a large room which seems to be the living room.

"Master, you can rest assure. I'll go and prepare something cold to drink for you. You must be tired after travelling all the way from Italy."

Giotto sighed and took of his cloak, unloosing his neck tie. "Yeah…I appreciate that, please…" he mumbled tired as he plopped down onto one of the couches.

Bob nodded and excused himself before he left the room. After the elder man left, the blonde took a glance around, carefully scanning the room.

'Well…nothing seems to have changed that much ever since I've left…' he commented. As he continued to investigate the room, his eyes came across a portrait, hanging on the wall across the room. He stood up and walked over to the wall, standing in front of the picture.

"Nii-san…Nee-san...and Mom...I'm home." He muttered with a gentle smile, staring at the persons in the picture. He wasn't sure how long he was staring at the picture or how deep he was drifted in his own world since he didn't even notice Bob re-entering the room.

He continued to stay like that for a while until the butler called out his name. "Master Giotto, I'm back with your coffee."

The blonde snapped out from his daze. "Ahh…thank you, Bob." He returned to sit on the couch and accepted the cup of coffee from the man.

"Master Giotto, you need no to blame yourself for what had happened. Everyone was glad that you decided to follow your own path instead of your father's." The man told him.

Giotto took a sip of his coffee. "Are you sure?"

The man nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. If not, those who are willingly serving you at the time would have left ever since the late master has passed away. I can tell that even your older brother and your mother are happy for you, too."

The blonde smiled. "Yeah…I hope they are…"

Bob was a butler that has been serving Giotto's family ever since he was young and has taken care of hm. Giotto's father was a rather powerful man in the world of society and had been tempting the blonde to follow his path. But, Giotto didn't. He instead wanted to create a vigilant group to protect the weak which only angered his father. But, it wasn't a problem since the old man has passed away three years ago.

So, Giotto followed his dream and abandoned his father's legacy. Shortly after his father's funeral, he created the Vongola Family with the help of his friends, who are now his guardians, and his allies. It was hard for all of them at first, but through all the hard works and overcoming all the hardships, the Family has become successful. Well…it was worth it.

Speaking of allies… "I wonder how's Cozart doing right now? It's been ages since I've seen him." The blonde wondered out loud. He stood up. "Maybe I should go and drop by him." Well…he didn't have anything to do at the time.

Bob nodded. "I'll prepare the car right away." With that, the two of them left the room.

* * *

"If you're wondering about Master Cozart, he's doing just fine. That goes the same for the rest of his family and the new heir." Bob told the blonde. They were currently in a car, heading to the Shimon's Mansion. Bon was the one driving.

"New heir? Oh right…he has a kid already…" Giotto blurted out in surprise from the passenger seat.

"Yes. The child is turning seven this year. You didn't know about that?"

Giotto rubbed the back of his neck. "Well…I've heard about it from time to time…but, I've got any times to visit him so…yeah…I didn't know. Heck, I don't even know who his wife is!"

Bob chuckled slightly. "The Lady of the Shimon family is named Ellen. I've met her once. She is a strong and independent young lady overflowing with rare beauty. Such a respectful lady she is."

"Oh…that's quite a praise coming from you. She sounds like a wonderful person. Damn…Cozart is so lucky."

"What about you, Master Giotto? Most of your Guardians are already married and have a family of their own, minus Mater Asari, Master Lampo and Master Knuckle. When are you planning to get a life with someone?"

Giotto's stiffened and sweat dropped. "Honestly…I've never thought about it…I think it's still too early for me, Plus…I have to take care of the Family." He reasoned.

Bob raised a brow. "Ho…then, what about Miss Maria? I've seen her clinging around you ever since she has met you. She even referred to you as her fiancé."

Giotto's eyes twitched in annoyance at the mention of that name. "She is noting to me. I'd rather say that she's more of a nuisance. There was a time she had caused me a lot of trouble by going around bragging to the others that I'm her lover." He face palmed. "Geeze…what a brat…"

"Indeed she is…Everyone in this mention have never been fond of that young lady."

"Well..I'm not very fond of her either. I think I'd rather prefer someone like Nana nee-san." The blonde grumbled.

"Agreed. Lady Nana was a really wonderful person. Your brother had made the right choice of choosing her." Bob commented. "And, I do hope that YOU would make the right choice, too, Master."

"You know…The way you say that gives me creeps…you almost sound like my father…" his voice lowered a little at the last part.

A bright smile from the elder man was his reply which only made it worse.

As the car got closer to its destination, Giotto could make out the shape of a mansion as large as his. The mansion was like an European style castle and was well-built.

"We're almost at the Shimon's Estate." Bob informed him as he drove through the large gate.

"Whoa…This place still impresses me as usual. As expected as the Shimon Family." The blonde muttered.

The butler chuckled. "Then, maybe we should redesign ours as well, Master. Since you will be living with your guardians, the mansion seems to be a bit small for you all."

"Hey…don't say that. It's already big enough. All the maids in the mansion will cry if we make it bigger than it is already-WATCH OUT!" Goitto shouted, pointing at the front.

The man was startled by this and immediately stepped onto the brake. A loud high pitch screech was emitted from the wheels as the car was forcefully pulled over.

The blonde was breathing heavily as the car has finally stopped.

"Master, what was that just now?" the elder man questioned, confused.

"There was a kid running across the street. Man, that was dangerous." The blonde murmured as he took of the belt and stepped out of the car. Bob raised a brow and did the same.

As soon as Giotto stepped out from the car, he spotted a small brown-haired kid sitting on his knees in from of the car. There was also another black-haired kid who looked just like the brunet, standing protectively in front of the boy.

Giotto let out a sigh of relief as he walked over to the two children. "Hey, you two, are you alright?" He asked gently, holding out his hand.

The two flinched as he did this. "Get away from us, strangers!" snarled threatened the black-haired boy.

"Hey, that's not a nice-" His voice faded away in surprise as he stared at the two boys. He didn't notice at first because he was still startled. But, now that he took a good look at the two boys…. True…they have different hair colors from him; one with brown and the other one black…

But…that gravity defying spiky hair…the two of them…they looked…

They looked just like him.

* * *

 **8Phew* I'm done. How was it? Did you guys enjoy it? I do hope so. Thanks for reading and please leave me a review of what you think. Is it silly? Boring? Should I continue it?**


	2. The Triplets who look like me

*** Beware of the OCs. There are a bunch of them in here.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2, The Triplets who look like me**

Giotto stood still, mouth gaping…eyes widened in shock and surprises…his jaw almost dropped to the ground.

The two children standing in front of him blinked in confusion as he continued to freeze like a statue. "Nii-san…do you think he's alright?" asked the brown-haired buy as he tugged the black-haired boy's shirt lightly.

The black-haired scowled. "Who cares? Anyway…are you hurt anywhere, Tsuna? You were almost hit by the car?" he asked worryingly.

"Ah...no. I'm fine. The car stopped before it could even hit me." The brunet replied. The black-haired sighed in relief, hearing this.

"Tsuna! Tsukuyomi!" The two of them turned to a red-haired boy and a blonde girl, running towards them, followed by a young lady with black hair.

"Hey, are you two alright?" the lady asked as soon as they made it to the two. When she received nods from them, she sighed. "That's why I told you to be careful when playing near the gates, all of you!"

All the four children had their heads slumped down in guilty at this. "We're so sorry…."

"Ahem…Excuse me." All of them turned their attention to Bob who cleared his throat. "I apologize for what had happened, Miss Ellen. I wasn't looking where I was driving."

"Oh!" the black-haired lady muttered when she recognized the old man. "Look if isn't it the old butler from Vongola Mansion? Hello, old man. How have you been doing?" She greeted.

"Yes. Thank you for your concern, Milady. You look as delicate as usual." He responded, bowing slightly.

"Hee…delicate, eh?" Ellen smirked. Then out of blue, she grabbed the old man by his collar, glaring murderously at him. Four of the children shook in fear and immediately went to huddle up behind the black-haired boy.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to describe ME as delicate?! I'm not like those weak, highly honored, house-sitting women!" She snarled. This only made the children shrieked in fear, excluding the black-haired boy.

Bob responded at her threat with a calm expression. "My mistake, Milady. You are as graceful as ever."

Ellen scowled and let go of the man. "What are you doing here by the way? It's unusual for you to come all the way here."

"Uhh… I'm here to accompany Master Giotto because he was coming to see Don Shimon." The butler replied, fixing his collar.

"Hmm…Your master, eh?" She turned to look at the blonde who was still freezing as if he had seen a ghost. She frowned and crossed her arms, glaring at him, indicating that she wasn't very pleased to see him.

"So…why the hell does he look like a lifeless doll? Oi!"

"My apologies." The butler approached Giotto. "Master, snap out of this. We have arrived at the Shimon Mansion." He told the blonde. "Master?"

"D-Do…" A small whimper broke out from Giotto as he stared at the children, pointing his finger at them.

"There is a saying that if you were to see your doppelganger, you will definitely meet a bad end…" He murmured, his voice seemingly shaking.

A vein twitched down the black-haired boy's head when he heard this. He stepped forward to deliver a strong kick on the blonde's knee, making him yelped in pain.

"OW! What the hell was that for?!" Giotto winced painfully, holding the place where he was kicked.

The black-haired boy huffed. "Serves you right, blondie! I don' understand what you're trying to say, but we ain't your dog, jerk!" He hissed.

Giotto immediately jerked up. "No, wait! I didn't mean it that way!" He exclaimed in defense, waving his hands in front of him.

"Hey! Giotto!" A man with red hair called out as he constantly waving his arm at the blonde, grinning at him.

"Yo, Cozart!" Giotto greeted back as the red haired approached the scene. "It's been a while."

"Hey there, Giotto. Glad to have you back, too." said Cozart as he fist-bumped with the blonde. "Say, where are the others? Are you here all by yourself?"

Giotton grinned. "Not really. I have got Bob to keep me company while G and the rest are with their family."

"I see." The redhead slapped him across his back playfully. "Well…everyone needs their privacy, don't they? Come and have some tea, Gio! It's been ages since we've last chat. Also, I want to introduce you to my family."

"Oh...Okay…"

With that, the both of them walked down the side path, into the garden.

Ellen sighed and turned to Bob. "Go and park the car somewhere else. I'll go and prepare some tea for them."

"Yes, Miss Ellen."

She then turned to the kids. "Go and play somewhere else. Don't wander off too far, got it?"

They all nodded. "Yes, Mom/Aunt Ellen." Immediately, they all took off to a certain direction with the small red haired boy leading the way.

* * *

"So…how was life in Italy? Got a girlfriend yet?" asked Cozart teasingly as he crossed his legs.

"That thought has never actually crossed my mind since I'm busy with the Family." The blonde responded nervously. The two of them were sitting on a chair under a shady tree.

Cozart rested his chin on his palm. "Oh really? So…life's great?"

"Well… Life is great after the Vongola Family was created…it's really great…Cuz all I have to deal with every day is endless amount of paper works and meetings…" replied Giotto.

The red head grinned. "Oh…Seems like you're having a good time."

Giotto chuckled and turned to where the children were playing. "Not as good as yours…" He murmured.

The redhead smiled in sympathy. "You should really look for someone, Giotto. I think it's about time you get married. Even G and that stoic Alaude is married, you know? Damn…they even have kids."

The blonde immediately held up his hand. "You don't have to remind me about that. I myself am well aware of that."

"Ho… is that so?" wondered his friend in amusement.

"Yeah…But… I'm not going to give that much of a thought to the topic yet…I have a feeling that…I shouldn't…"

Cozart raised a brow. "Your hyper intuition?"

"Yes… It's telling me that…I have things to settle first before I look for someone else…"

"Hmm…maybe it's telling you the truth…" the redhead spoke up. "You DO have some problems to solve…" He grumbled in a very low voice.

"What was that?"

"Uh…no! it's nothing! Nothing at all! Ahahaha…" Cozart brushed it off.

The blonde gave his friend a look of curiosity but didn't quite pay any attention to it.

"By the way, Cozart…" the redhead turned to him. "I thought you only have a son. How come there are four kids in total? Plus…three of them kinda look familiar…"

"Oh! Sorry, sorry! I forgot to introduce them to you." Cozart chuckled and turned to the kids. "Hey, Enma! Triplets! Come here for a second!" He called them.

All of them immediately stopped playing and raced towards the redhead. Cozart stood up and knelt down, opening his arms. The boy with the red head cheerfully ran into his arms while the rest of them only stood by his side.

"Papa, what's up?" the redhead asked.

The father grinned and turned back to his friend. "Giotto, I would like you to meet me and Ellen's son, Enma. Enma, this is Papa's best friend, Uncle Giotto. Say hello to him."

The boy nodded and looked shyly at Giotto. "H-Hi, there, Uncle Giotto. My name is Enma. Nice to meet you." He muttered timidly.

Giotto smiled. "Nice to meet you, too, Enma-kun." Somehow…he felt a little bit old being addressed as 'Uncle'…But wow…the similarity between the boy and Cozart…you could tell almost immediately that they're father and son.

The older Shimon grinned and ruffled the black-haired boy's head. "And…the three here are Enma's friends. This kid is Tsukuyomi."

The kid only scowled at the mention of his name.

"…and Tsunayoshi…Tsuna for short though."

The brown haired boy smiled, looking as shy as Enma as he hid behind Tsukuyomi. "H-hi there, Mr. Giotto."

"…and lastly…" He gestured at the blonde girl who was also hiding behind the black-haired. "…this young lady here is Tsubame. The three of them are triplets."

"Oh…I see…they are quite…unique looking triplets…" Giotto commented as he carefully looked at each of the triplets.

The two boys have the same hair style as his but with different hair colors. Tsukuyomi has black hair with red eyes, whereas Tsuna has brown chestnut hair with honey brown eyes. As for the girl, she has long golden hair with sky blue eyes.

'Blue eyes?' Giotto raised a brow. 'Why do they look kinda familiar? It's like….I've seen them somewhere else before…' He mumbled to himself as he stared deeply into those clear blue eyes that resembled the blue sky.

"Ummm…Giotto?"

The blonde blinked and averted his gaze from the three. "Oh yeah. Nice to meet you guys. I'm Giotto."

"Yeah…the one that called us dog-something…" Tsukuyomi snarled, glaring menacingly at the blonde.

"I've already told you that I didn't mean it that way!" Giotto's face turned red in nervousness. "Doppelganger! It's doppelganger! Not dog!"

"Yeah right…" was the boy's response before he turned away.

After that, Cozart told them to run along and continued what they were playing saying that he has to talk with the blonde. The children nodded obediently and left the two adults.

Cozart laughed. "Seriously…I don't know what you two are talking about, but I guess you've totally pissed him out by whatever you've said."

"I've told you…it was unintentional…" Giotto muttered, somewhat feeling a bit guilty.

"Ahahahaha…don't worry. That's how the way he is. Though he behaves a little rebellious, Tsukuyomi is quite sensitive and overprotective when it comes down to his siblings. He is the eldest after all."

"That's quite amusing…anyway…they usually come to play here?" asked the blonde.

Cozart nodded. "Yup. They don't have other kids to play with around their homes so they often come to play with Enma. They are classmates after all. Moreover, their mother and Ellen are close friends."

"Speaking of Ellen…You haven't probably introduced me to her yet…You didn't even invite me to your wedding…you big meanie…"murmured Giotto with a sad sigh as he rubbed a fake emotional teardrop form his eye.

The redhead looked a bit irritated at this. "Idiot…I DID invite you…you were the one who didn't show up at the wedding…"

"Eh? Really?"

"Also...I thought you've already known Ellen so I don't really bother telling you…" He grumbled the last part.

Giotto stared confusedly at him. "Huh? What do you mean? This is actually the first time I've met or seen her."

The redhead tensed up and grinned nervously. "Yeah! That's right! This is obviously the first time you've met her. What am I saying?"

The blonde raised a brow in questioning, but said nothing.

"The tea is here." said Ellen as she approached the two Dons with a tray of tea set and placed it on the table.

"Uh…Ellen, sorry for troubling you."

"Nope…this is nothing at all." The raven responded while pouring the hot liquid into the cups before placing them in front of the two. "Here. Help yourself."

"Uh…thank you very much, Miss Ellen." The blonde said politely before picking up the cup, taking a sip of the tea. "Wow…it tastes great. What brand is this?"

Ellen took a seat beside her husband. "This is no brand tea. It's herb."

"Herb?"

"Yes. It's good for your health."

"Oh…you seem pretty knowledgeable about Japanese herbs then?"

"I appreciate your compliments… but I have little knowledge about them unlike someone else…" she replied sternly, her eyes glowed an erringly red as she directed a threatening at him.

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of his head when he sensed this. His face began to turn pale. 'Why do I get the feeling that she's trying to hold herself back from devouring me whole?'

The atmosphere around the three became super tense as carnivorous aura began to leak from Ellen. Giotto began to get scared of this.

'I thought Bob said she's a wonderful person?' He cried in his mind.

Cozart could feel the killing intense from the raven so he placed his hand on her shoulder, giving her an assuring smile. The raven's face flushed red as she scowled and averted her eyes from him.

She placed her cup down and stood up. "It's getting pretty late. I'll drive the three kids back home."

"You're right. She might get worried even if she knew where they are."

"And Cozart…" Ellen glanced over her shoulder to the redhead. "We need to talk tonight." She told him.

Cozart stared at her for a moment and grinned. "Sure…Be careful on your way."

The raven huffed. "Well then, if you would excuse me, Don Vongola." She walked away from the two towards the children.

After she left the two men, Giotto felt like he had just dodged a bullet that nearly hit his heart. He was still sweating nervously.

The redhead took notice of this. "Sorry about that, Giotto. She seems to be in a bad mood today."

"Is she always like that?" the blonde asked.

"Hmm...Yup. She's like that all right. But, there were times when she gets upset and goes on a long term mission. Only when she cools down that she would return." said his friend with a thoughtful look.

"Wait! You assign her on missions?" Giotto exclaimed. That was unexpected.

Cozart blinked and nodded. "Yeah… She asks for it by herself. Though she looks weak, she's one fearsome young woman." He let out a disappointing sigh. "If only she could behave more lady-like…she would be super cute…"

As soon as he finished his sentence, a sword with black blade flew past in front of his face and hit the tree beside.

The two of them jumped and shrieked at this. "What the?!"

Giotto turned to the side and saw Ellen standing her ground near the children with her arms crossed.

"I thought I just heard someone talking behind my back. Maybe I was mistaken." She said with an amusing smirk.

This time, Cozart also shivered in fear as he watched her left with the triplets.

"She's scary…Very much scary…" the blonde murmured. _Maybe even more scarier than Alaude…when the hell did she get her hands on a dangerous sword like this?_

"Well…that's what people usually get for comparing her to the other ladies… But, at least she didn't try to cut my head off last time." The redhead chuckled.

 _Last time? You mean…this usually happens?_ "Cozart…what does she usually do when she's not on mission?" asked Giotto.

"Huh? Oh…when she has no mission, she would stay at the mansion, helping with the chores, checking on the herbs, polishing her sword and….trains Enma…" The last part made him shivered a bit.

"But…even though she's like this for most of the time, she's a great person, you know? She always takes good care of everyone around her, especially Enma." The redhead smiled gently.

Noticing hi friend smiling that way, Giotto could tell that Cozart loves her more than anything. He could feel that the man was very grateful for the fact that she has always by his side…even though she might be a little bit fierce…

The blonde huffed and rubbed the back of his neck. "You're one lucky man, Cozart…to have someone like her…I'm so jealous…"

"There's nothing to be jealous about Giotto. I was the one to get jealous towards you at first… but then…when I thought about it…it was because of the two of you…that I've met her…So I'm grateful." Cozart scratched his cheek as he gave his friend a toothy grin.

The blonde raise a brow. "There is it again. I don't quite get what you mean. You're talking as if I used to have a lover or something…"

Realizing what he had blurted out, Cozart immediately snapped is mouth shut. 'Ah, Crap!' he sweated.

Giotto's eyes narrowed suspiciously as he leaned forward. "Now, fess up, Shimon Cozart! What exactly were you indicating to?"

The redhead could only backed away, letting out a small laugh which sounded like a whimper. "Uh…well...you see…it was just a jo-"

"Cozart! I can tell when someone's trying to tie his way out, remember?" the blonde said with smirk, tapping his head.

'Damn him and his freaky demonic hyper intuition!'

Now what was he going to do? Giotto didn't seem to know what he was talking about so that could only mean that… 'He still doesn't remember anything…' The redhead felt sad at this. But, even so…he couldn't tell him yet…Giotto has to settle his mess on his own. But, right now... 'Somebody please help me!'

Luckily, his wish was granted. "Master Giotto, it's almost time for dinner. I suppose we should leave as well." Bob interrupted the conversation as he took out his pocket watch.

The blonde sighed and stood up. "Very well. Cozart, we'll talk about this matter next time." He told the redhead. "I'll drop by when I have time. See you later."

Cozart sent Bob an appreciation look as he watched the two of them left. The butler responded by bowing slightly. He then scratched his head, looking very troubled.

"Damn…Me and my big mouth…Ellen's going to kill me once she heard this…" he murmured.

* * *

The raven in mentioned sneezed slightly which startled the kids.

"Aunt Ellen, are you alright? Did you catch a cold?" asked Tsubame.

Ellen shook her head. "No…not really…"

"Maybe somebody's gossiping abou you, old lady." Tsukuyomi smirked, crossing his arms behind his head.

The raven's eyes twitched. "If it weren't for the fact that I'm driving at the time, I swear you would have been history." She growled. They were currently on their way back home with Ellen driving the car.

"Mom…can I ask you something?" Enma poked leaned forward at the passenger seat. He insisted that he wanted to come, too and she couldn't refuse him.

"I've just notice… Tsuna and Tsukuyomi look quite similar to Uncle Giotto, don't they?" the red head asked. Ellen tensed a bit at this.

"Yeah…who was that guy anyway? He even has the same hair color as Tsubame." Tsukuyomi added, glancing at his sister. "Do you have any idea of who he is?"

Ellen clenched the steering wheel, gritting her teeth. "He's no one else…" She muttered which made the kids confused. But, feeling that they shouldn't ask anything further, they sat in their seat quietly. After a few minutes of driving without uttering a word, Ellen stopped the car in front of a shrine pillar.

"We're here." She told the kids. "I'm not going to see you guys off today. Make sure to go straight to your home, alright?"

"Yes, Aunt Ellen." Tsuma and Tsubame responded before they got out of the car. When Tsukuyomi was about to step out, the raven muttered to him.

"Brat, tell your Mom that I'll drop by some time."

The boy scowled, but nodded. "You owe me once again, old lady." With that, he got out and stood beside his two siblings.

"Let's go." He murmured before he stepped forward, taking the lead. Even though there was a shine pillar in front of them, there was nothing else but a large forest beyond the pillar.

Ellen watched as the three walked into the forest. When she was sure that they were out of the view, she drove away.

As the three walked deeper into the forest, they spotted a woman dressed in miko robes, waiting for them. The woman has light blue eyes with long dark hair that was tied with a white ribbon into a loose pony tail.

The triplets' eyes brightened up when they saw her and immediately made a run to her. The woman smiled when she saw this and opened her arms to greet them.

"Tadaiima, Kaa-san!" the three exclaimed in unison as they ran into her rams, hugging her.

"Okairinasai, Tsuna, Tsukyomi, Tsubame." She responded, patting them on their heads. "So…did you guys have fun today?" She asked once she pulled away.

"Yes, we did."

"I'm glad to hear that. Come along. Dinner's almost ready. It's your favorite dish today." She said with a gentle smile as she began to walk off to a large Japanese style house several meters away from where they were standing.

"Hai, Kaa-san!"

* * *

 **Well...and that's it. How was it? The rest of te Guardians and their kids will appear in next chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it. Thanks for reading and reviews, plz!**


	3. Moving in together

**Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3, Moving in together**

"Master Giotto, the guardians have arrived along with their family." Bob informed while knocking on the door to his boss's study room.

"Master?" He tried again when no response was received. 'Don't tell me that he's falling asleep while signing off the paper works…'

"Hey, old man!" He wiped around and spotted the Storm Guardian, G, approaching him. "Where the hell is Giotto? Is he still sleeping?"

The butler shrugged. "No clue. He was in his study, clearing all the documents ever since last night." He gestured to the large door.

G scowled. "He is definitely sleeping. Hey, Giotto!" He called out, banging on the door. "Giotto!"

The butler was getting a little worried as he watched the guardian knocked on the door many times. G was a short-tempered person and when he snapped…

"Giotto…WAKE UP, IDIOT!" the man growled as he kicked the door, forcing it open. Bob sighed. _I was already expecting this…_

Inside the room, Giotto was sleeping soundly on his desk, with his head leaned comfortably on his arms. There were stacks of paper works lying on his table.

"He really is sleeping…" the red head murmured and walked over to the blonde, shaking his shoulder. "Giotto…wake up. Giotto."

The blonde stirred and mumbled. "Five more minutes, Mom…"

G felt a vein twitched at this.

"WHO THE HELL IS YOUR MOTHER?! WAKE UP OR I'LL SHOOT YOU, IDIOT!" He shouted and pulled out his revolver, aiming it at the blonde.

Giotto sat right up from his seat when he heard the familiar threat that he had always heard.

"Wait, G! I'm up! I'm up! Don't shoot!"

Bob sighed and shook his head.

* * *

"You could have let me sleep more, G…I had to stay up all night dealing with that hell…" Giotto grumbled as he rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Don't blame me. You're the one who told us to meet up in the living room as soon as all of us get here." The redhead argued back.

The three of them strolled down the corridor, heading to where the others were waiting for them.

"So…everyone's here?"

G nodded. "Yes. All of us are here including the kids."

"Speaking of kids, I heard that Lampo's family had sent his cousin under his care."

"Yup. You know how his family is...werid… Also, Asari also has a kid that he has been taking care of with him today. You won't mind if we all stay with you here, right?" The redhead asked.

"Of course, I won't mind. I was the one who suggests all of us staying in the same place last time. So, you're all welcome." The blonde replied with a smile. "After all… there's no one other than me and the staffs in this overly large estate…"

G gave the blonde a suspicious look at this. "Are you sure?"

"Huh?"

The man shrugged. "Never mind. I'll ask you about it later…"

"Oh…Okay…"

* * *

"Hello, everyone! Sorry to keep you guys waiting." Giotto greeted once they entered the living where the rest of the Guardians and their family were waiting. All the attention immediately turned to him and G as soon as the door was closed.

"Hi there, Giotto. It's been a while." A young woman with long silver hair stood up from the couch and greeted back. Alongside her were two children, one boy with silver hair and a talker girl with pink hair.

"Larvina, it's nice seeing you. The young ones here are Hayato and Bianchi I presume…" the blonde said politely.

"Thanks for inviting us to stay with you, Giotto. We really appreciate it." said another blonde as she approached the silvernette from beside and linked arms with her.

"Elena. I see…You two are still hanging out with each other."

The two women giggled. "Of course, we do. Our children go to the same school and our husbands are working under the same boss. So, the wives should also be familiar with one another. Right, Kaoru?"

Giotto turned to look at the person in mentioned and he spotted the person, standing beside his Could Guardian with an equally stern expression. Unlike Elena and Larvina, she was wearing a Japanese Kimono. Their son, Kyoya, was standing by their side, glaring at a dark blue hair boy standing beside his Mist Guardian, Daemon Spade. The boy has one red eye with a kanji 'six' written in it.

"I don't remember hanging around with you ladies." Kaoru responded, ignoring the two.

"Awww, come on! Don't be so grumpy, Kaoru. We're going to stay under the same roof after all. You can at least drop that stoic face of yours." said Elena teasingly. Larvina nodded in agreement.

"Leave me alone…"

The blonde sweat dropped. "She's still the same as ever…just like Alaude…"

Bob was staring around his room in amusement. 'I get the feeling that the mansion's going to be pretty much lively after this.'

"Hi there, Giotto." The Rain Guardian, Asari walked over to him with a young boy beside him.

"Oh, Asari. Glad to have you here. And the young gentleman here is?"

The Japanese man smiled and ruffled the boy's head. "His name's Takeshi. He was the boy that I was talking about."

"Hello there, Uncle Giotto. Thanks for having us here." said Takesi with a grin.

"You're welcome, Takeshi. Say, I haven't seen Lampo or Knuckle anywhere." The blonde looked around the room for the missing Guardians.

"I'm here, Giotto." Lampo, the Lightning Guardian, said as he raised his arm from the couch. "I can't move around because the brat here is sleeping soundly."

"Oh hey, Lampo. So…this is your cousin?" the blonde glanced at the green haired and saw him holding a small kid with afro hair wearing a cow suit. A pair of horns stuck out from the kid's hair.

"Yeah. His name's Lambo. Don't ask me anything about his costumes. My family was the one responsible for this. Not me!" the teen said almost immediately when he noticed the curiosity in his boss's eyes.

"Uhh…Oh I see." _His family is definitely weird…._ The blonde thought. "Now, the only one who's missing is Knuckle then."

"Ah…if it's about that priest, he asked me to tell you that he won't be joining us yet. He says he wants to spend some times with his sister and her family." G informed him. The blonde nodded in acknowledgment.

"Mukuro, stop fighting with Kyoya!"

"Kyoya, stand down!"

He turned back to the group when he heard Elena and Kaoru scolded their sons. Indeed…the two boys was glaring at one another, with their weapons in their hands; a pair of tonfas for Kyoya and a trident for Mukuro.

The blonde sweat dropped. Where did they get those weapons?

"Daemon, say something!"

"Nufufufu…Mukuro, you're scaring your sister. If you gonna fight him, do it somewhere else." The mist Guardian told his son, gesturing at his sister hiding behind his legs.

The boy lowered his trident and replied obediently. "Yes, father. I'm sorry for scaring you, Chrome." He patted the girl's head gently. The girl looked quite similar to her brother, but her hair was violet. She also has an eye patch covering her left eye. He saw the girl nodded and whispered something to her brother.

He just smiled and patted her head again.

Giotto sweat dropped as he stared at the Mist Guardian and the kids. "Well…Daemon has one amusing family…"

"I second that…" G murmured.

An applaud from the butler caught all their attentions.

"Everyone, I believe it's almost time for lunch." He informed them.

"That's right. Come on, girls! Let's go prepare some food!" Elena exclaimed turning to the other females.

"You need not to be concern, Miss Elena. The chef will take care of it."

But he was brushed off. "Oh…nonsense. Let us help with the chores. We don't like to sit around doing nothing. Don't you agree?"

Larvina and Kaoru nodded in agreement. "Besides…we want to thank Giotto for inviting us to stay here by helping around. That won't do any harm to you, will it, Giotto?" She asked the blonde.

Giotto stared at the ladies. Kaoru was also giving him a look so he had no choice. "Well…if that's what your wishes, ladies."

"Yes!" Lavina and Elena cheered as they high-five. "Okay then, you guys take care of the kids for us. We'll let you know when we're done cooking. Come on, Kaoru!" With that, he two left the room, dragging Kaoru with them, leaving the men and the kids behind.

G watched as his wife head to the kitchen with the other two, and as soon as he was sure that she's out, he immediately turned to his kids.

"Bianchi, Hayato, do you mind go playing outside for a moment? I have things to settle with Giotto." He told them.

"You, too, Takeshi." said Asari.

"Be careful when you play outside, Mukuro, Chrome."

"Kyoya, leave me for a moment."

Giotto blinked in confusion as he watched his friends, minus Lampo who was still holding a sleeping Lambo in his hands and Knuckle who wasn't there at the time, said this to the children.

The kids nodded before they left the room, closing the door behind them.

"Umm…guys?" the blonde was dumbfounded. This was unusual of his friends to act this way at the same time.

G turned to him and gave him a suspicious look, including the others except for Lampo.

"Now, Giotto. We have questions for you." the red head said with a very serious tone, so serious that it almost made the blonde backed away.

"S-Sure…what is it?" Now, what the hell was going up in their mind?

"Gotto…answer us honestly. Do you have a lover?"

"Huh?"

"Are you seeing someone else at the moment?" G asked again, indicating the previous question.

The blonde shook his head. "Of course not. What makes you think that?"

"Because we saw the, Giotto." Asari was the one answering. "The other day when I went to pick up Takeshi from school, we saw three kids looking very much like you."

"One of them was a girl though. " Alaude pointed out.

Daemon smirked. "At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me so I didn't pay any attention to it. But, when I found out that I wasn't the only one to witness the three…"

Giotto raised a brow. "Three kids that look like me? A girl?" Wait, could they be referring to…

"Could it be that…there's one brown hair boy, one black hair and a blonde girl?" the blonde asked to make sure.

The temperature in the room suddenly dropped when he said this.

"So, they are your kids, aren't they?" G exclaimed in surprise grabbing Giotto's shoulders. "You idiot! You were seeing somebody behind our back, aren't you? What's more than that is those kids look like they're seven years old! You have been going with someone for a long time, haven't you?"

"W-Wait…"

"Congratulations, Giotto. So, who's the mother?" asked Asari with a smile.

"Asari…"

"Nufufufu…Primo's not as innocent as he looks, doesn't he?"

"Vongola Primo, you're under arrest for having an illegitimate…no…for having THREE illegitimate children!" Alaude threatened as he took out his handcuffs give them a click. Giotto backed away

"Wait a second…what are you guys talking about?" Lampo was the only one who didn't understand what was going on.

"WAIT!" the blonde shouted, shushing all his friends. "Would you guys listen to what I have to say first? G, hold your temper and Alaude, please keep your handcuffs. I swear that I have done nothing wrong."

"Yeah? Then, how would you explain about those three kids? You know them, don't you?" G snarled.

The blonde raised his hands up in defense. "Calm down, G. Yes., I do know them because I have just met them last week while I was paying a visit to Cozart." He told them. "And they are definitely not mine. Believe me! I was as shocked as you guys when I first met them."

"That's still doesn't clear the fact that whether they're yours or not." Alaude pointed out.

Giotto face palmed. Oh come on, guys! I swear I don't know them!"

"Don't know who?" They all turned to the door when they heard Larvina's voice. "What's with all of this?" She asked.

"Uh, Larvina….it's nothing. We were just talking about the three kids that look freakingly like Giotto." Asari responded.

The silvernette raised a brow. "The kids that look like Giotto? Oh, you're talking about the Sawada siblings, aren't you?" She said clasping her hands together. "So, that's what the commotion is about."

All the men stared in confusion as she giggled. "Don't worry. They're not Giotto's kids, I can assure you."

"Wait! You know them?" G asked in surprise.

The woman nodded. "Of course, I do. They're Hayato's friends."

"How can you say that they're not this blondie's children?" Alaude demanded suspiciously.

"Well…that's because their Dad passed away seven years ago. Their mother is the one who take care of them at the time. I asked her once and she said she doesn't know and have never met Giotto before." Larina replied.

"Are you sure?" the redhead asked.

Larvina crossed her arms. "You think I'm lying to you, G?"

The redhead gulped and shook his head. "No...not at all…"

The woman smiled and turned to the other men. "And what about you gentlemen? Do you think I'm telling lies?"

They shook their head almost immediately. "Good. Then would you please, excuse me." She walked into the room to pick up her purse. "I'm going back to help Elena and Kaoru. Don't cause any more troubles, understand?"

"yes, ma'am…" was their reply. With that, she left the room once again.

"Women are very scary at times like this…" G grumbled and the other nodded in agreement. "Anyway, Giotto, sorry for doubting you just now. That was a bit stupid of me."

"Yeah…same here." Asari added.

The blonde smiled. "Don't be, guys. I'm just glad that the misunderstanding has been cleared. Anyone would react the way you did when you've seen something like that."

Alaude still didn't drop the curiosity of his. "I still suspect you though, Primo. Unless I have a more proper explanation, keep in mind that I would still be investigating about you."

Giotto sighed. "Can't be helped then…do whatever you want, Alaude. But I'm sure that you won't find anything because they are most certainly not mine…"

Daemon smirked. 'This is getting amusing…whether they're his or not.'

Lampo sighed. "I have no idea what the hell is going on..."

* * *

Cozart woke up from his deep slumber when he felt the warm, cozy presence missing from his arms. His eyes fluttered opened to see that he was sleeping alone on the bed. He grunted and sat up, looking to the side of the bed. He was expected to see the peacefully sleeping form of his wife, but she wasn't there.

For a moment, he almost shouted out her name in panic, but calmed himself down when he noticed a silhouette figure standing outside at the balcony from the window. Sighing in relief, he stood up and walked up to the glass-stained door which led to the balcony. There he saw his black-haired wife, standing all alone with a small blanket covering her upper body.

He smiled and approached her from behind. "What' the matter, beautiful?" he muttered wrapping his arms around her waist. "Having a hard time sleeping?"

"What are you doing here? Don't you have a meeting tomorrow?" Her calm response and unstartled reaction made him knew that she could sense him approaching her.

"You should be sleeping…" She muttered.

He smiled and leaned his head on her shoulder. "I thought know better than anyone that I can't sleep without you…"

Ellen sighed. "Then…what about the nights when I'm gone for missions? How is it that you're able to sleep soundly then?"

"Now that's harsh…I could barely close my eyes. I'm restless when you're gone…" He replied with a silly grin.

He could hear a small scoff from her. "Talk about being cheesy…"

He smirked. "So…what are you doing here in the middle of the night? Are you perhaps…thinking about her?"

Ellen nodded. "Yeah…it's already been seven entire years…" She placed her hand on his. "I'm worried about her…now that that man's back. How would she react when she knows it?"

Cozart frowned. _So, that what's she worrying about…_ He was worried, too. But, there's noting that they could do. Both of them knew that better than anyone.

"Hey…do you think I should tell her?" He heard Ellen asked in a low voice, almost sounded like a whisper.

He gave a small thought at the question. "Well…that's up to you. Even if we keep it quiet from her, she would still find out one day…since he's already met the triplets today…" He paused. "But…I doubt that Giotto would remember her…"

He felt her tensed up in his arms, shaking slightly. "Ellen?"

When he glanced at her, he was surprised to see tear drops from her red eyes that were threatening to fall.

"Maybe…I should have stopped her that day…" She murmured. "I should have…" Her voice was starting to crack a little.

At this point, the Shimon Don knew that she was crying which surprised him. She was not the kind of person to let her emotions got over her. This was one of the few times that he actually seen her…breaking down.

"Hey…Shh…No more tears, Ellen. It wasn't your fault. It was her decision, remember? It was her choice…the path that she had chosen… She would still do it either way even if we were to stop her." He whispered soothingly in attempt to comfort her.

"It wasn't your fault so…don't blame yourself…" He murmured, kissing the lobe of her ear. This made her blushed madly and shivered a bit.

"Control yourself, idiot!" She growled, as she elbowed him in the guts. Cozart winced in pain and let go of her, backing away. Now…he wasn't expected this sudden attack….

Ellen glared at him, her face was still red. "I'm not asking you to comfort me, but if you're going to do it, do it in a more normal way!"

She rubbed her tears away and retreated back into the room and sat down on their bed. "Anyway…just forget about tonight. I'm going to sleep." She grumbled before dropping herself onto the pillow, covering her body with the blanket.

Cozart smirked as he glanced at her. "She's so fun to tease with sometimes."


	4. One Normal Day

**I really apologize for not uploading for a very long time. I barely have time to type a few words before of my class and stuffs. I hope you guys would understand. Thank you for reading this story and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Thank you very much.  
**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4, One Normal Day**

One peaceful night, in a Japanese house surrounded by nothing but forests, a small blonde girl glanced around the room nervously, looking a little panic.

"Psst!" She wiped her head to the side and saw her two brothers waving at her from the closet. "Come in here, Tsubame. Hurry!"

Tsuna whispered, pointing inside the closet. The girl gulped before nodded and quickly tip-toed to the closet. After she had entered the closet, Tsukuyomi pulled the closet door closed gently, being careful of not making a loud noise.

"Are you sure she won't find us in here?" asked Tsuna worryingly, feeling unsure.

"Shh…" His brother shushed him. "I heard footsteps heading this way. Be quiet."

The two children did what their brother told and quickly snapped their mouth shut, trying not to make any noticeable noises.

Like their brother has told them, they heard faint footsteps waking and stopped in front of the room. The sound of the door eventually sliding opened echoed through the quiet hall, including the room.

"Here she comes." Tsubame whispered. Her brothers shushed her. The person seemed to be walking around the room, observing it as the footsteps moved around. When the person stopped in front of the closet where the triplets were hiding, their faces went paled as they held their breaths.

The person was standing in front of the closet for a while before walking away. He or she was assumed to have left the room since they heard the sound of the door closed. After what felt like an hour, the three let out a breath of relief.

Tsukuyoumi opened the closet door to see whether the person was still in the room of not. He found no one in the room. He sighed and opened the door a little wider before getting out of their hiding place.

"She's gone. You can come out." He told his two siblings and the two of them eventually came out.

"Phew…For a moment, I thought we were going to get caught." Tsuna murmured as he rubbed the small sweats from his forehead.

Tsubame nodded. "…me either…Good thing that the closet was big enough for the three of us to hide…"

The black-haired boy huffed and crossed his arms. "Well then, where should we hide next? There's no guarantee that she wouldn't return to search this room again."

"Hmm...what about the attics?"

Tsubame shook her head and whimpered repeatedly. "No way! No way! No way! It's so dark and scary in there!"

Her two brothers sweats dropped. 'Yeah…we've completely forgotten that she's scared of darkness…'

"Well, whatever…" Tsukuyomi grumbled and glanced at the door. "We should stay in here a little longer… Maybe she's still around here somewhere."

Tsuna grinned. "I bet this time, she wouldn't be able to find us."

The other two smiled and nodded. Victory was most certainly…

"Who wouldn't be able to find who?" said a voice from behind the three.

"GYAAAA!" the three jumped and clung onto one another when they heard this. They heard small giggles coming from the culprit's voice and turned to see no one other than their mother. She was standing beside the closet that they were hiding, covering her mouth with her hands as she giggled.

"I found you." She said playfully.

The children let go of one another wen they've recovered from their shock. "Kaa-san, you almost scared the hell out of us! Wait! I thought you already left!"

"I was going to leave, but I happened to hear small breathings coming from the closet." replied the black-haired woman. "Since I've found you guys, this only means that I've won once again. Right?"

…

The three couldn't utter a word, feeling the defeat…once again.

"When will we ever win you in this game...?" the black-haired boy murmured.

The mother smiled. "You will when you are able to learn how to hide your presence. Now, off to bed, you three. You have school tomorrow, aren't you?" She told them.

Tsukuyomi groaned. "Come on, Kaa-san. It's still early… And I don't feel like sleeping yet."

"Nii-san…you know that the day after tomorrow is Saturday, don't you? Why don't you bear it for just one more day?" said Tsuna, trying to confront his brother.

Their mother nodded in agreement. "Tsuna's right, Tsukuyomi. Plus, I'll give you archery lessons when you get back from school, okay?"

Upon hearing the word 'Archery Lessons', the black-haired boy's eyes lightened up in excitement. "Alright, then! Let's hurry up and off to our bedroom. Come on, Tsuna, Tsubame!" He exclaimed cheerfully as he ran off from the room.

Tsubame sighed. "Nii-san really gets all work up when he hears that Kaa-san will be teaching archery… I thought Yuki Baa-san is the one to take care of that…"

She heard her mother sighed and gently placed her hand on the two kids' head, ruffling their hair. "Unfortunately, Yuki Baa-san doesn't really get along with him and he complains that her archery skills are not as good as mine, and that the only thing she is capable of teaching him is how to use his flames properly."

The two sweats dropped. Their big brother was a battle maniac. Their mother chuckled. "Now…off to bed, you two. Your brother might get lonely in the bedroom. I've already laid down the futons for you."

The two nodded. "Ne…Kaa-san, can you stay with us till we fall asleep?" asked Tsubame, tucking her mother's kimono slightly.

She smiled and held the girl's tiny hand in hers. "Sure. Come along, Tsuna."

"Hai!"

With that, the three of them left the room, hand in hand. The mother made sure to switch off the lights and closed the door behind her after they had left.

By the time the three have gone into their bedroom, Tsukuyomi was already in his futon, sleeping soundly with the covers over him.

"Oh my, seems like he's already in his dreamland." said their mother teasingly and the two twins giggled slightly at this. "You should join him, too. You don't want to be late for school, aren't you?"

The two nodded before they made their way to the bed sheets beside their sleeping brother, crawling into the covers. Their mother turned off the lights and sat down beside their bed sheets.

"Kaa-san?"

"What is it, Tsuna?" replied the black-haired woman gently when she heard the brunet.

The boy stared at her with his brown wondering eyes. "Why does Nii-san always take combat lessons from you and Yuki Baa-san?"

"Well… that's…" She didn't really know how to answer that one even though she has a few ideas why her eldest son would ask her or her friend to teach him how to fight. She patted his head. "…I think that's for your brother to answer. You can ask him by yourself."

"Oh…okay…"

"Kaa-san…" This time, it was Tsubame's voice. "You won't leave yet, right?"

The woman smiled. "Of course, I won't. I promise to stay till you fall asleep, don't I?" She leaned forward and gently pecked the girl's head, followed by Tsuna and the snoring Tsukuyomi.

"Sa…Oyasumi nasai, watashi no tenshi." She whispered softly.

The two smiled and closed their eyes. "Good night, Kaa-san…"

* * *

 **The next morning**

"Enma! You'd better hurry up if you don't wanna be late for school!" shouted an impatient Ellen as she stood at the front door of the Shimon Mansion, fully dressed in her…umm…battle outfit…which included a black leather stiff jacket decorated with silver wares and a sword fixedly strapped onto her belt, plus a pair of black fingerless gloves.

"Hold your horses, Ellen. He still has a lot of time till the bell rings." said Cozart as he threw his arm around her shoulder.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I know that he has time, but if he continues to think naïvely that way, it's not going to be very good once he grows up."

The redhead pouted, his arms snaked around her, pulling her into a tight hug.

Her face's flustered deep red at this. "H-Hey! What the hell?! Let go!" She shouted, struggling against his hold. "What is your problem, Don Shimon?"

"Give me a kiss…" She heard him murmured softly, making her blinked in confusion.

"Excuse me?"

"Only a small peck is fine, too…" She felt her face flamed up in embarrassment.

"W-Wha… What is wrong with you, Cozart? Stop saying strange things to me! It's not funny at all!" She uttered.

One of his hands gently cupped her chin and turned her face to look at him. "I'm being serious, Ellen!" He told her. "It's just that…after sending Enma to school…you'll be gone for a mission instead of coming back home…It makes me feel…a bit lonely…"

Ellen huffed. "Idiot…" She placed her hand on his large one that was on her waist. "Don't be a kid, Cozart. I'd only be away for a day. It's not a long term mission, remember? I'll be back before you even know it."

The red head however grumbled childishly. "But still…that doesn't change the fact that I'll have to be away from you…"

The raven sighed. _This guy is really hopeless…_ She glanced at her husband's pouting face. She clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Fine…"

Cozart's head jerked up. "What was that?"

He felt the woman inside his arms tensed up a bit. "Just for today… just one kiss, all right?"

The Shimon boss immediately nodded, overjoyed by what she has just said. He closed his eyes and eventually leaned forward to her. Her face turned redder at this. 'Ahh…Damn…at this point, I'm gonna die from embarrassment….' She grumbled in her thought and turned away for a moment. But then again, she took a stare at the redhead. 'Well...a small peck wouldn't hurt, would it?'

She let out another sigh, and leaned forward as well, closing her eyes. There was no way that she could look at him in his eyes though they were closing. The closer she felt their face got, the redder her face became.

Just when their lips got closer enough to touch each other…

"Mama, I'm sorry for making you wait!" shouted little Enma as he ran down the stairs, carrying his tiny school bag. "Now, let's…." The words faded from his throat when he saw his two parents. "Umm… what are you guys doing?" He asked innocently.

' **SLAM!'**

"No, no. Nothing at all." replied Ellen; her face was still beet red. "Your father and I were just talking about my mission!" She laughed nervously as she brushed the matter off.

"Oh…" The boy blinked. "…Ok…" He took a glance at his father, who was forcefully shoved away by his mother against the wall behind them, leaving a small dent around the area. He sweat dropped. _What exactly happened here?_

"Umm…if you say so…"

Ellen let go of the poor Shimon boss and walked over the car, parking beside her. "Come along, Enma. You don't wanna be late, right?" She asked.

The boy nodded and quickly skipped to car, not before glancing at his father one more time. "See you later, Papa."

The Don shook his head, snapping himself out from the daze and smiled. "Have a nice day, kiddo." He responded, ruffling the boy's head playfully. The little redhead grinned and nodded before making his way to the car. As soon as he made it to the passenger seat and buckled the belt, Ellen closed the car door.

She sighed and placed her hand on her hip. "Well then, I supposed we should get going."

"Eh? But, what about my-?" The rest of his words struck upon his throat when he felt a strong, and rough, yet delicate hand grabbed him by his collar, pulling him forward. His eyes were as widened as the size of a plate when Ellen swiftly pecked him on his cheek.

Ellen quickly let go of him and pulled away, avoiding eye contact with him as she was embarrassment by her sudden motive. "I-Ittekimasu…" She murmured softly under her breath and immediately got into the car.

Hearing the sound of the engine started, the red head Don came back to his senses and watched as the car drove off with his two families in there. He smiled and stroked the place where he had received the small peck.

"Itterasshai…"

* * *

Meanwhile, in Vongola Don's study room of the Vongola Mansion, Giotto was sleeping soundly sleeping on his desk once again…no…like he usually did. It was not a very good habit for him to sleep on his desk instead of his bed. Both Bob and G had always lectured him about it but…let's just say that it's hard not to do something that you've already gotten used to.

But…even so…

' **BANG!'**

"GIOTTO!" yelled a man as he barged into the room. Giotto immediately bolted up from his chair, sitting up straight. "Wait! Wait! G, Don't shoot! I have just finished my papers! I swear I'm not sleeping on my desk!" He blurted out, still half asleep.

…he was still scared of his right hand man's usual temper.

…

… _Silence…_

…

"Pfft!" Giotto blinked in confusion and rubbed his eyes groggily. His vision was becoming a bit clearer and his sleepiness was starting it fade away.

"Asari?" He was expected to see his right hand man glaring menacingly at him with his revolver, but instead…it was his Rain guardian, Asari, standing at the door way, covering his mouth as he snickered.

"Ahahaha…you nearly jumped out of your chair, Giotto." said the guardian as he tried to suppress his snicker. The blonde let out a sigh of relief as he rubbed his temple. "Don't scare me like that, Asari. For a moment, I thought it was G….since he's the only one barging in here with that shouting."

Asari grinned. "Sorry about that, Giotto. G told me this is the best way to wake you up so I- hahaha…"

The blonde sighed. "So it was him… So...where is he right now?"

The Japanese has finally calmed down. "He along with Larvina has gone to drop the kids at the school. He says he's going to accompany her to the mall for tonight's dinner after that."

"Oh…I see. And…what are you doing here?"

Asari blinked. "Well…G told me that you kind of have a mission for me."

"Oh yeah…sorry. I guess I forgot." The boss grinned sheepishly and pulled out a file from his drawer. "Here's the file. And about the mission…"

* * *

 **In front of the school gates**

"Ah…Ohayo, Enma!' greeted Tsuna cheerfully when he spotted his red-haired friend got out from the car that was pulled over near the gates. "…and ohayo, Aunt Ellen!"

"Good morning, Tsuna, Tsukuyomi, Tsubame." The red head returned the greeting once he saw the siblings standing in front of the gates. Like usual, the brunet was the only one greeting while the other two were just being themselves; Tsukuyomi simply waved at him and Tsubame was hiding behind her brothers giving him a small acknowledging nod.

Ellen smirked as she watched the three's different behavior. _They're as amusing as always._

Just then, another car pulled over beside hers. The car door opened as Larvina came out. "Hi, there, Ellen-chan!" The silvernette greeted and walked over to the raven. "You're here to send your son off…or are you planning to go on a battle field?" She asked, staring at the raven from head to toe, observing her outfit.

The raven's eyes twitched in annoyance. "I'm off to a mission after this! Got a problem with my way of dressing, woman?" She snarled.

Surprisingly, Larvina wasn't tensed up by the threat and pinched the raven's cheeks. "Ow ow ow ow! What the hell are you doing? That hurts!"

"Mou! You and Kaoru are just the same." pouted Larvina as she let go of the raven. "You two are such rare stunning beauties yet you never act to match up with your features. Such a waste."

"Excuse ME for not being a proper weak fragile beauty…" grumbled Ellen in irritation.

"Mom, we'll be going now." said Hayato, tugging on Larvina's dress. Bianchi was there beside him, along with Takeshi, Mukuro, and Chrome. Kyoya has already left the group and walked into the school.

The lady turned her attention to the boy and patted his head. "Have a nice day, everyone." She said, smiling at the kids. They all nodded and ran off, leaving the two females behind.

"Did all of you guys come together or what?" asked Ellen with a questioning look as she watched all the kids left. "For a moment, I thought I saw Elena and Karou's kids."

The silvernette grinned. "Well…we did come together…since we're living together."

"Really? That's a surprise!"

"Larvina! Aren't you done yet?" shouted G impatiently from inside the car. That was when he noticed the black-haired woman in front of his wife. "Who's that?"

The raven turned to look at the man. "Who is he? Your husband?"

The silvernette huffed. "Yes, he is." She turned to the red-haired. "G, let me introduce you to my friend, Ellen. Ellen, this is my husband, G."

Ellen frowned. "G? So, you're the storm guardian of the Vongola Family then?"

G's eyes narrowed at this. "Yes, I am. And may I ask how you know about this?"

The raven didn't answer; instead, she kept her eyes locked on the red haired. G returned the staring with a glare. The tension between the two became a little chilly as they continue to stay that way for a moment.

"G, I forgot to mention that she's Cozart's wife." The tension was however broken when he heard his wife's told him this. "What?! Her? Cozart's wife?"

His eyes' widened as he took another look at the raven. _No wonder she knew about the Famiglia…_

'Grr…I can't really stand the fact that I'm in the presence of that blondie or his guardians…' Ellen grumbled to herself as she averted her eyes from the Storm Guardian. Even though the Shimon and the Vongola Family were ally, that didn't matter to her at all. "Anyway, I'm leaving, Larvina. I have to drop by somewhere else before my mission. It's been a pleasure of meeting you, Storm Guardian."

She said and turned her heels to open her car's door. "Wait, Ellen!" Larvina stopped her before she could enter the car. "You're going to see her, aren't you?"

A silence stare was the reply that the raven had given. Larvina clearly knew that she was right. "G, could you come and pick me up when I call you? I'm going with Ellen." She said, turning to the red-haired man.

"Huh? But, what about the-"

She interrupted him. "We'll do it after you pick me. I'm sorry but, I'm visiting a friend of mine."

G sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "If you say so…Be careful on your way." The female smiled and nodded. Then she turned to the black-haired who looked very much dissatisfied. "You've got no problem if I tag along with you, right?"

Ellen felt a vein twitched from her head. Seriously, when and how in the world did she befriend with these annoying girls? 'Kaoru must have had her hands full of these girls now that they're living together…. I sorta feel sorry for her…'


	5. A Weak Swallow

**Disclaimer: I do not own Khr.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5, A Weak Swallow**

 **With the triplets' mother**

She was in front of the shrine near their large family house, doing her daily routines which were watering the plants and cleaning the shrine's ground, etc. She was sweeping the floor in front of the shrine when she felt a presence of flames approached her.

She stopped sweeping and gazed at the sky. She closed her eyes when she felt a gust of wind blown past the shrine. "The darkness in your flames…it's starting to fade away…" She murmured quietly under her breathe. When another gust of wind blew once again, she immediately took a step back to avoid a black-flames-coated arrow zoomed past her. The arrow narrowly missed her and found its target on the tree behind her instead. She stared at the arrow and sighed.

"This is not very amusing at all." She immediately held up the broom to block another incoming arrow. She frowned. This one was also coated with black flames. She raised her hand to gently touch the arrow. As soon as he hand came in contact with the black flames, the black arrow turned into orange flames before it exploded into orange dusts.

The woman frowned and turned to the direction where she felt the presence. Two figures were walking towards her and one of them was holding a bow, aimed to her.

"I would really appreciate it if you would stop greeting me this way whenever you pay a visit, Yuki." The mother said to the shooter.

"See? I told you to stop doing it, Ellen. Now, you made her angry." Larvina scolded the black-haired woman beside her before she turned to smile at the other female.

"Ohayo, Tsu-chan. We're here to visit you. Oh…and sorry about Ellen."

Ellen scowled before lowering her weapon. "There's nothing to apologize to her. Don't you see how she dodged my aim?" She turned to the other female and smirked. "Right, Miss Shrine Maiden?"

The blue-eyed female sighed. "There is no harm done…but even so, please restrain yourself from doing it." She walked over to the two. "Let's go inside the house. I'll make some warm drinks for you, Yuki, Larvina." She gestured towards the large house.

The red-eyed female huffed. "Alright. I don't really have much time to spare though…" She grumbled before walking ahead.

Larvina smiled. "She has always said that yet the only times she's visiting you are before she's on her way to a mission or when she needs to train your son." She sighed and rubbed her temple. "She should have come on her free days instead of complaining."

"Well…if she does that, it's not like her at all…" remarked the black-haired. She stepped forward and held out her hand. "After you, Larvina." She gestured.

The silver-haired giggled. "You need not to be so formal with me. Though…I do wish G would act this way from time to time."

* * *

 **At the School**

"Eh? So you and Takeshi are living together at the time?" questioned Tsuna while he unloaded the necessary books from his bag onto his desk.

"Yup! My Dad's boss invited all of us to stay together with him last week so we're home mates now, right Hayato?" said Takeshi with his carefree smile as he threw his arm around the annoyed looking silver haired boy.

"Oi, don't act so friendly with me, you baseball-freak!" Hayato growled in irritation. But, the boy ignored him and laughed half-heartedly.

Tsuna grinned in amusement as he watched his two friends. "So, who else are staying with you guys?" he asked, taking a seat. Enma was sitting beside him, listening to the conversation with interests. "Is there anyone else we know?"

Takeshi let go of Hayato and held out his finger.

"Uh…hmm…Well…there's Hayato, his sister, Me, Chrome, Mukuro, Lambo…"

"Lambo?" the brunet looked confused. "Who's that?"

"He's one of the members' cousin or something. He's staying back at home since he's too young to go to school." Hayato replied, dropping himself onto his chair.

"Oh….and?"

The black-haired continued. "…and…there's Kyoya…"

Enma and Tsuna jerked up from their seats, their face looked surprised and shocked. "What? Kyoya? For real?"

Hayato nodded. "Yeah…apparently, Kyoya's father worked under the same boss as ours."

"Now, that's un expected…" The brunet murmured. Then, he realized something. "Wait a sec….you did mention that…Mukuro's also there, right?"

Takeshi blinked and nodded. "Yes. I'm sure I did."

Catching up with what Tsuna was trying to say, Enma sweat dropped. "Kyoya and Mukuro…staying under the same roof…"

That could only mean…

Hayato sighed. "Well…just as you guess…they've destroyed a large couch three days ago while they're fighting…"

"….Figures…"

* * *

Cozart hummed cheerfully as he looked through one paper after another before signing them. He was sitting behind his desk in his study room, surrounded by mountains of paper works which were as much as Giotto's.

There was a knock on the door. "Master Cozart, I've brought your tea." said a stern and stoic voice of an old yet still strong old man. The Shimon boss placed his paper down and twirled his pen playfully.

"Sure. Come in."

As the door opened, an elderly butler walked into the room pushing the tray of tea sets. "Have you done with your papers yet, Master?" the man asked, poring some tea into a cup.

The redhead sighed. "I would have done it by now if it weren't for the extra work for the repairs…"

"Whose fault do you think it was that the wall at the front door got cracked, Master?" asked the man threateningly as he gently placed down the cup in front of the boss.

Cozart cringed at the menacing look that was given by the butler. "Umm…E-Ellen…I guess…"

"Then who was responsible for provoking Lady Ellen to demolish the wall?" the man asked again, fixing his glasses.

The red head whimpered. "C-Cut it out already, Tanaka. You're scaring me."

But…the menacing aura surrounded the man wouldn't just go away. Cozart felt like he was walking on thin ice. His life was in danger!

"Oh, Alright! Enough with that glare! It's my fault, okay? I was the one who teased her!" He exclaimed as he began to feel the room's temperature dropped.

The man gave him a satisfied nodded upon hearing the young Don's reply. The red head let out a breath of relief as if he has been freed from his prison. Seriously, who was this man, his grandfather?

…Well…whoever the elder man was, he was still one of the persons that the Don had been relying on ever since he was young. _But even so…What's wrong with me teasing with Ellen? She's my wife after all…_

"She might be your wife, but you know more than the others when not to push her to her limits, Master." said Tanaka calmly as if he could hear what the red head was thinking.

"Huh? Wa-"

"I'm not offending your behavior towards her, Master. But…control yourself when you're with her. You know how violent the lady can be when she is embarrassed just like this morning."

Cozart shrugged. "Well…it's not that bad. It was just a small crac-"

He was interrupted. "Then, what about the time when you suddenly kissed her in the public which caused her to almost destroy the entire area? And that time when you played a small prank on her then she nearly wiped out the shopping mall? And that time when…" Tanaka continued as he crossed his arms and gave his boss a stern look.

The red head sweat dropped. 'And just like that…he immediately switched into lecture mode…'

He sighed. This was going to take a really long time…

* * *

"Heh…so you're saying that the two of you have been fighting more frequently now that you're living in the same house?" asked Tsukuyomi.

"Kufufufu…precisely, yes." came a reply from the dark blue hair boy sitting beside.

Tsukuyomi and his siblings went to the same school, but unfortunately, the three of them were always end up in different classes. It was hard for all of them, especially Tsukuyomi, at first, but, as time went on, the three learned to cope up with the others and get used to being parted.

Tsukuyomi was seen hanging around with Mukuro from time to time, but it was mostly because the two of them have something in common and would always compete one another. But, they stopped doing it recently knowing that their sisters didn't like the fact that they're fighting.

The black-haired boy let out a sigh. "I really feel bad for the guy that needs to pay for the things that got destroyed by you two."

Mukuro smirked. "It's no big deal. Whenever I fight with that skylark, only furniture and other small things have got destroyed. But, if our fathers fought, half of the mansion nearly got destroyed."

The younger boy deadpanned. "And…the master of the house says nothing about it?"

The blue-haired chuckled. "They just simply won't care whatever he says."

"Really? I thought that man is supposed their boss. Geeze…what kind of useless boss he is that his underlings wouldn't listen to him?" Tsukuyomi grumbled and leaned back against his chair. "I really would love meet that guy to see how pathetic he is."

* * *

At the Vongola Mansion, Giotto sneezed out of blue and almost spluttered his coffee all over his papers. Luckily for him, it was avoided. He titled his head and blinked. Did he catch a cold or was somebody gossiping about him?

* * *

In the youngest triplet's classroom, Tsubame was sitting in her seat holding a book in her hand while she was talking to her friend, Chrome.

"I see…That must have been pretty fun at the mansion now that there're a lot of kids."

Chrome let out a tiring sigh. "Well…it is fun to get to know more about my friends but… Nii-san and Kyoya fought against one another even more after that. I'm beginning to wonder if it's a good choice to live together…"

Chrome and Tsubame have similar things in common. Chrome was a shy and timid girl. So was Tsubame. Chrome was the younger one of the twins, and Tsubame was the youngest of the triplets. Chrome's brother was very protective of her, and the same went for Tsubame. Both of their brothers were sort of buddy-buddy so were the girls. The only thing different was that…Chrome has a father…but…Tsubame didn't… That didn't bother her at all. Having her mother and her brothers were enough for her.

And…given the above similarities, the two got along pretty great.

Tsubame smiled. "Of course it is. I'm sure it's not that bad. Eventually, the two might learn to befriend one another instead of fight."

Her friend looked at the other way and sighed again. "I do hope so…" Chrome then startled slightly when someone threw a roll of paper at her.

"Chrome!" Tsubame immediately turned her head to a group of girls and glared at them. "What was that for, M.M?" she asked the culprit.

M.M smirked and held out another paper. "Nothing. I was just thinking of asking her to swap duties with me."

"What? Is it your duty today? Why are you going to swap with Chrome?" Tsubame didn't like that girl at all. She and her friends have always enjoyed to tease the purple-haired girl and bullied her just because the girl is being too _close_ with their 'Mukuro-sama'.

"Shut up, blondie! This is none of your business. Stay out of this."

Tsubame didn't back down and stood her ground. "It is none of my business, but it's not nice to make someone do something in your place when you're supposed to do it! If you insist on doing this, I'll definitely tell the teacher!" She threatened. Tsubame might be shy and timid for most of the time, but, she couldn't stand seeing her friend being bullied unreasonably.

M.M clicked her tongue in annoyance and walked away with her friends, not before shooting a deadly glare at the blond haired girl. Tsubame flinched a little at this.

Chrome placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder, looking very much worried. "Tsubame, you didn't need to do that. I'm already used to this kind of thing."

"Why wouldn't I do it? I can't just stand around while watching my friend being treated like this. It's not a right thing to do."

"But…you know how M.M is….What if she hurts you because of this? I don't want something to happen to you because of me."

Tsubame grinned and placed her hand on Chrome's. "Don't worry. I'll be just fine."

* * *

 **After School**

"Ne, Tsubame, are you going to take the trash out?" asked Chrome as she put her books into her bag pack. Tsubame was at the door way of the class, carrying two black plastic bags in her hand.

"Yeah. I forgot that today's my duty, too. You can go ahead of me, Chrome. Oh, if you met my brothers on the way, do you mind telling them to wait for me at the gates? I'll be there as soon as I finish my chores." said the blonde.

The purple-haired girl gave her a nod. "Sure, I don't mind. But, are you going to be alright? Shall I come with you?"

The blonde shook her head and gave the girl an assuring look. "No need, Chrome. I'm sure your brother is waiting for you. Don't mind me. Ja, mata ashita!"

With that, she gave a wave at her friend and ran off to finish her chores. Chrome watched as her friend took off with a worried expression. "Tsubame…"

Tsubame left her class and walked to the back of the school building. When she arrived at the place, she placed the two trash bags into the large trash can and carefully closed the lid.

"Hey, Blondie!" said a stern, arrogant voice which she was very much familiar with. Of course….who wouldn't recognize that 'looking down' intention filled voice of a certain red hair girl. Tsubame sighed and turned to the side. "What do you want, M.M?"

A smirk plastered on the red-haired face as she narrowly eyed the blonde girl before her. Her friends were also standing beside her, glaring at the girl.

"I've been wondering to ask you, blondie…" M.M stepped forward, slowly walked towards Tsubame and stood hoveringly before the blonde. "Lately…you've become quite nosy for these past few days." She circled around the girl.

"I don't like it. Could you stop doing that? I hate it when people stick their nose into a matter that doesn't concern them. You've been doing it recently." The red head grumbled.

Tsubame tensed up a bit. Her face slowly shot down. "T-that's because you were doing something bad…."

M.M smirked. "Heh…something bad?" She placed her hands sassily on her hips. "Like what?"

"Y-You were bullying Chrome…."

A hand shot out and suddenly grabbed her blonde hair, yanking her forward. Tsubame yelped in shock and pain as M.M dragged her forward and dropped her onto the ground. "Bullying? Which part of that look like bullying?"

The blonde was starting to get scared a little. The pressure that she was receiving from M.M ad her friends….it was too much for her to handle…if she was all by herself…no….it was not because it's too much pressure…

"Don't get so cocky of yourself, wench! Just because you always have your smart-headed brothers with, doesn't mean that you'll be as good or as smart as them!" The red head hissed. Behind her were her friends, cheering for her and sneering at the blonde.

Tsubame crutched her eyes shut tightly. She was scared…terrified…but it wasn't because of what was happening at the time…

"Without them…without your brothers…."

She braced herself. _It's coming…_

"…you're just a useless piece of trash! You're nothing without them, you damn fatherless whore's wench!"

Tsubame gasped, feeling her heart shattered. Those words have completely shattered her. What she was scared of wasn't M.M…. it wasn't because of that…

Seeing the blonde's face slowly losing colors, M.M smirked and crossed her arms. "See? You're weak, girl! How long do you think your brothers would keep protecting you?"

It was those words that she was scared of…

"They may be protecting you now and always, but some day, they would definitely come to think of you as a nuisance."

…Those harsh words that said how she was a nuisance…

"You're useless."

…Those harsh words that meant how weak and fragile she was…and that she would be holding both of her brothers back.

Tears dripped down her blue eyes as she covered her ears with her hands. Her shoulder shook as she tried not to cry. That didn't stop M.M from continuing to torture her.

"Heh. I bet your whore mother's already got tired of you."

Tsubame gritted her teeth. "Stop it…please…." _Anything but that…. Not Kaa-san…_

The red head shrugged. "Well…I supposed she would get bored. Whores are not accustomed to raising children after all, in fact…there are three of you." Seeing the state that she was in, her culprits were staring down at her, snickering.

"D-Don't say such thing about my Kaa-san…" Her voice was shaking. It pained her when someone's saying bad about her mother…and she wasn't able to do it… she didn't dare to fight back.

"Kaa-san is not...she is not…"

 _Someone…please…stop them…_

"Hey, what's going on here?" said a stern, stoic voice that every student was familiar with. M.M and the gang immediately flinched. "What the hell are you crowding here for, herbivores?"

All the heads eventually turned to look at the owner of the voice, their face turned pale as they did so.

"Oi, answer me or I'll bite you to death!" The voice demanded. "What are you crowding here for?"

Tsubame shakenly raised her head. "K-Kyoya…"

* * *

 **At the School gates,**

"Ja, we'll be going then, you two." said Takeshi cheerfully, waving at the two boys.

"Take care…" Tsuna and Tsukuyomi watched as their friends walked off to gather in front of a black car where a man was waiting for them.

Tsukuyomi sweat dropped as he watched Mukuro and Chrome soon joined the group. "…He wasn't joking when he said they're living together…."

Enma stepped forward. "My Papa's here. Would you guys like to go with us?" he asked the two, pointing at the car that was driving to their way.

"I appreciate your invitation, but we're fine." Tsuna raised his hand as he refused. "Eh? Why?"

Tsukuyomi sighed and crossed his arms behind his head. "Tsubame's not here yet so we're waiting for her. Don't worry. It's not like we're not used to walking home."

Enma smiled. "Oh…okay…Then, see you guys later. Have a nice weekend."

The two waved at the red head as they watched him making his way to the car.

"Ne, Nii-san…don't you think Tsubame's taking too long?" asked the brunet worryingly. "I thought she was only taking out the trash…"

The elder brother glanced at the large clock on the school building. "Yeah…you're right…" He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Should we go look for her?"

Tsuna nodded and the two walked off to where their younger sister was supposed to be.

"Living together in a big house, eh?" Tsuna heard his brother mumbled while they were on their way to the back of the school.

"Nii-san…our house is big, too you know… It just looks a bit old…"

The black-haired waved his hand. "Nah…I didn't mean it that way. I don't care how they actually look. But... I'm just thinking how they would take care of two since…uh….they're living together now…"

Tsuna raised a brow. "You mean…Kyoya and Mukuro?"

"Yeah…Ahhh… they're going to get stronger now that they're fighting more than they usually did… I should train more so that I won't be weaker than them…" His brother continued while stretching his arms.

The brunet cringed, stooping on his track. "…Nii-san…can I ask you something?"

Tsukuyomi turned to look at the boy because he sensed the curiousness in his brother's voice. "Oh…yeah…sure… What is it?"

Tsuna was hesitated. What would his brother think of this? How would he answer this? What kind of answer he was expecting to get from him? He asked his mother this but…

"… _ **I think that's for your brother to answer. You can ask him by yourself."**_

'Yeah…I want to know…I want to know why Nii-san wants to get stronger…' He stared at his brother directly in his red eyes.

"Nii-san, why are you always…training?" He finally asked. "Why are you trying to become strong? Please, tell me!"

The red eyed boy blinked as he was asked this. He was a bit taken aback by why the brunet wanted to know this. _Now…that's surprising…I thought he might already know the answer…_

He huffed seeing his brother's eagerness and seriousness. _Seems like he doesn't…_ "Well…I'm not sure how to say this…Ow! Hey, watch where you're going!" He snarled when someone bumped into him, interrupting what he was going to say.

" _A re,_ M.M? You're still here?" Tsuna questioned; surprised by seeing her. He blinked. _Wait….where did she just come from?_

Tsukuyomi leaned to the side and figured where the girls had popped out from. His eyes widened. _The back of the building! Isn't that where Tsubame…?_

Realization dawned upon the two boys. The black-haired boy grabbed M.M's shoulders tightly, giving her a death glare. "Oi, you girls better didn't do anything to our sister!" He snarled, frightening all the girls.

Tsuna immediately rushed towards the building while his brother was at it. "Just how many times do I have to tell you to leave her alone?!"

M.M was scared by this, but she sneered. "Seriously, Sawada, why are getting all worked up because of that trash? Why are you and your brother even protecting her? That girl is weak and she is even weaker than that one eyed girl!" The grips on her shoulder tightened every time a word escaped her mouth.

"Shut up!"

She smirked. "One day, you'll see, Sawada. She'll definitely become an eyesore to you and the two of you would get tired of her!"

"SHUT UP! DON'T YOU DARE BAD-MOUTHED MY FAMILY WHEN YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THEM!" Tsukuyomi growled in rage and threw her mercilessly onto the ground. The girl shrieked in fear and pain as she landed on the ground. Her friends gasped and backed away in fear. It seemed that M.M had angered the black raven.

Tsukuyomi turned to glared at her, his eyes glowing crimson red. "If you dare do anything to hurt Tsubame or either of my friends again, I'll show no mercy next time, M.M." With that, he quickly rushed off, heading to where Tsuna had gone to.

As he was about to make a turn to the building, he suddenly braked when he saw a certain skylark walked out from the corner. "Oi, Kyoya!"

The young skylark stared bluntly and shot a gaze behind him. "She's right behind that building, crying."

Tsukuyomi gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. "Tsubame…"

An amusing smirk plastered on the prefect's face as he eyed the boy before him. "How interesting. No wonder she was named 'Swallow'… She truly is weak."

Tsukuyomi jerked up and glared at him. "What was that?"

Kyoya stared carefully at him. "Three siblings…" He pointed at the black-haired. "…the carnivorous raven…the naïve omnivore…and finally…the weak herbivore. It does make sense. She is 'WEAK'."

"What the hell are you trying to say, you aloof bastard?"

Kyoya huffed and took a step forward, walking past the boy. "If you continue to let things go on this way, she would become even weaker, Sawada Tsukuyomi. Stop protecting her." He told the boy before walking away, disappearing from the sight.

Tsukuyomi stood there, his fists clenched, his teeth grounded against one another. 'Don't blabber around when you don't know anything about us…' He brushed the matter away for now and continued on his, rushing to where Kyoya had told him.

'Damn them all!' He cursed. He quickly turned to the corner where the trsh can was. "Tsubame! Tsuna!" He called out once he got there.

"Nii-san." He looked around and saw Tsuna kneeling on the ground beside Tsubame, who was shaking uncontrollably. The brunet's hands were holding the blonde tightly and gently.

"Are you alright? Did that bastard do anything to you?" asked Tsukuyomi worryingly as he quickly approached the two, kneeling in front of them.

Tsuna shook his head slightly. "No…he didn't do anything in particular…but, Tsubame…"

They heard a small hiccup coming from their sister who has her face down all the time. "Tsubame! Are you hurt? It's okay now. We're here. We're right here with you!" He said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Tsubame looked up and stared at her brothers, tears dripped down her eyes like waterfall. Tsuna was becoming more worried at this. "Tsubame?"

"Tsukuyomi-nii…Tsuna-nii…" She sobbed. "Gomenasai…Hontoni Gomenasai…" She sniffed covering her face with her hands .

This made her brothers to become a lttle panic. "W-Wait! Tsubame, what are you saying? Why are you apologizing?"

"I'm sorry, Nii-san… I'm so sorry for being weak… I'm so sorry…"

The two were stunned, hearing this. Tsuna's mouth gaped slightly as he was lost at words. What now? What was he supposed to say to comfort her now? Tsukuyomi wasn't doing any good either as he looked like he was about to snap. "Tsubame…."

* * *

 **I apologize for the late updates, guys. I really don't have much time for this but I'm not going to abandon the story either. I would still continue the story though it might take a while for the next chapter. I hope you guys would be patient with me. Thank you very much for reading this story and I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as well. Until next time, Ciao Ciao! ^^  
**


	6. It's okay to be weak

**Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6, It's okay to be weak**

" _ **Nii-san…I'm sorry…. I'm so sorry for being weak…" sobbed Tsubame desperately.**_

 _ **Her two brothers were stunned hearing this. "Tsubame, why would you say that? What's wrong?" Tsuna asked, gently patting the sniffling girl's back. Tsubame didn't or rather… she couldn't reply because of her weeping.**_

" _ **Nii-san…" Tsuna turned to ask his brother to help him confront her but the raven was seemed to be lost in his mind.**_

" _ **Nii-san?"**_

…

"Tsukuyomi, your grip on the string is loosening."

He jumped a bit and released the string when he heard his mother talking to him. As soon as he came to realization that he was in the middle of his training, the arrow has already been shot and it gradually missed the target.

He clicked his tinge in annoyance at he glared at the arrow that missed its target. His mother sighed. "Don't blame the arrow, Tsukuyomi. Just now, it was you who loses concentration." She told him.

He lowered his bow and ruffled his hair. "Hai…I'm sorry…"

"There's nothing to apologize. Next time, just make sure to keep your mind clean during the training."

He nodded obediently. "Hai, Kaa-san…"

The black-haired woman stared at her son before placing a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Let's take a break, shall we?" she said with a smile and went to sit down on the mattress where she had placed.

The raven did as his mother told and went over to sit down beside her. He placed his bow by his side before shrugging his shoulder a little.

"Tsukuyomi, something has happened yesterday, right?"

He felt his body tensed a bit when she said this. "Ah…what are you talking about, Kaa-san? Everything's fine. Don't worry." He replied with a nervous laugh, trying to brush the matter off as much as possible.

His mother's face remained unchanged; concerns and worries were written on her face. "I did not ask if anything's fine, Tsukuyomi. I asked if something had happened."

He flinched. 'Damn…I'm not good at this…' In this kind of things, Tsuna was always the one to talk things out so that their mother wouldn't be concerned about them. But, he was very bad at doing so and would only make his mother's worries grew.

Taking her son's silence as a hint, the mother sighed. "Tsukuyomi, I don't mind if you do not wish to tell me." She said calmly. "But, sometimes, can you at least let me know if you're troubled?"

His body tensed. There's no way he could do that. Letting her know when he or his siblings were in trouble… It would make her worried. No! Neither of them wanted her to be worried. They had to take care of themselves…of their own problems. The three of them… he, Tsuna and Tsubame…they promised to be strong so that they wouldn't need her help.

The mother's eyes softened. "Yesterday, Tsubame was crying, wasn't she?" The boy flinched. Yes…she was right. "You three might be acting as if nothing was happening, but… I can tell." She told him. "I know when you three are troubled, but… I tried not to ask because I do not want to ask you to say something against your will."

She sighed. "I am happy to know that you three are trying to handle everything yourself… But, sometimes…when I see you do something secretive like this… I somehow…feel like being left out…"

The boy felt his shoulders shaking. Trying to prevent himself from breaking down, he clutched his eyes shut tightly. His hands were clenched into fists as his grips on his hakamas tightened. "Gomena sai, Kaa-san…" He stuttered.

"We weren't trying to make you worry about us… We don't want you to worry about us…because we're worried about you… W-We don't have Tou-san like any other family…so…Kaa-san always has to do everything for us…"

The woman's eyes softened. "That's no big problem. Even with Tou-san here, I will still continue to do the same."

"It's not like that!" He growled. His voice was cracking, but he wasn't crying. "It's not like that…That's not what I mean…"

She watched as he tried to hold back an emotional break-down. To put it bluntly, it almost made her heart ached. Knowing that her children were trying their best not to make her worry was already difficult for her to handle…but, for them to always try to hold back themselves from crying in front of her…especially Tsubame… She just couldn't bear to see it.

She placed her hand on his head, ruffling his black hair. "Enough, Tsukuyomi…"

He raised his head to look at her; red crimson eyes met with the crystal sky blue. "Kaa-san…"

She smiled. "Say no more, Tsukuyomi. You don't need to say it if you don't want to. I will wait…until you, Tsuna and Tsubame... I'll wait till you all are ready to tell me…someday. Always remember that I'll be there to listen to everything you will tell."

Tsukuyomi almost busted into tears hearing her saying these words with her soft, gentle voice. He shook a little as he sniffled. "H-Hai…" He stuttered. "Arigatou…Kaa-san…"

His mother smiled brightly at this. "Anytime, my dear."

While the two still remained sitting on the mattress, there's was a shuffle sound of the grass being stepped as someone was walking over to the dojo.

"I hope I did not interrupt something, didn't I?" asked the person with a voice of an elderly old man.

The mother retreated her hand from her son's head and turned to look at the man. "No, you did not. Thank you for coming all the way here, Grandpa Talbot."

Tsukuyomi blinked at the name. 'Talbot?' He stared at the old man who has black clothing covering his eyes with a tattered cloth covering his body. He was also holding a staff in his hand.

Talbot chuckled. "You're welcome, my lady. By the way, is the young one beside there your little boy?"

Tsukuyomi tensed knowing the man was referring to him. 'I thought he's blind since he's wearing that blindfold.'

He felt his mother playfully ruffled his hair. "Yes, grandpa. This is Tsukuyomi. You've already met him once. Tsukuyomi, can you go and call your siblings down? There will be two more guests arriving."

He blinked and titled his head to the side. "Two more?"

She nodded. "Aria said she's dropping for a visit. She said that HE is coming along, too."

Knowing who that HE was indicating, Tsukuyomi felt an annoyed vein twitching inside him. 'Urgh…seriously?' Nevertheless, he nodded and ran off to house where his brother and sister was.

Talbot grinned in amusement as he watched the boy took off. "Look how much he has grown! He's going to a strong guardian someday." He commented. "The first time that I've seen him was when you gave birth to the triplets, right?"

The black-haired woman in front of him nodded. "Yes. That was seven years ago. Anyway, I apologize for asking you to come all the way here, Grandpa."

The old man chuckled and waved his hand. "No, don't worry about it. It's no problem at all. It has already been a while since I've seen you so I'm glad that you've requested for my presence."

She smiled gratefully and gestured her hand towards the house. "Shall we go in and have some tea? After that, we can talk."

"Yes, my dear. By the way, have you heard about it yet?"

She looked at him in confusion. "Heard what?"

Talbot sighed sadly and lowered his head. "It's about Kiyori…"

* * *

 **At the Shimon Estate…**

The gate to the grand mansion opened as a black car drove inside and parked in front of the mansion. Tanaka, the head butler of the Shimon family walked out from the mansion just in time to see Ellen, who was stepping out from her car.

"Welcome back, Lady Ellen." The old man greeted with a small bow. Ellen huffed and rubbed her shoulders a bit, handing her sword to Tanaka which he received, being careful of not to touch the edge.

"I'm back…" She returned the greeting. "I'd like to drink something fresh."

The man nodded. "I would prepare it right away."

"Mama, Welcome back!" came a cheerful voice from Enma as he ran towards her and jumped into her opening arms. "Tadaima, Enma." She grinned and pecked his forehead.

"Okaeri, Ellen." Her eyebrow twitched in annoyance as she turned to face the Shimon boss. "What? No welcome-back kiss for me?" He asked, grinning.

The black-haired huffed and turned her head to the side. "No way!"

"Ouch! I'm hurt by this, you know?" Cozart sweat dropped as he walked over to his wife and his son. "Come here, Enma. Mama has just got back from the mission so she's too tired to carry you." He said, hold his son's shoulders. Enma smiled and nodded before he let his father carried him from his mother's arms.

Ellen sighed. "Don Shimon, the mission wasn't that tiring. I'm not really worn out by it."

"Oh really? Always acting tough, aren't you?" He chuckled lightly. "But, I like that part of you as well. Somehow, it's very cute."

Ellen could feel her face flame up rapidly when he said this. "W-Wh-Wh-What the hell are you saying? It's creepy!" She growled to hide her embarrassment.

"Mama's face is all red." Enma wondered innocently. "Mama, are you not feeling well?"

Ellen shook her head and ruffled his head. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

Cozart grinned and nodded. "Yup, she's fine alright. Mama's just happy because Papa said she's cute."

"SHIMON!" Her face's turned even redder at this.

Enma titled his face to the side. "Mama's happy face looks like she's angry…"

"Pfft… I know right?"

"Ahem!" A cough from Tanaka caught the three's attention. "I apologize to suddenly interrupt you all, but, the lunch's almost ready." He told them.

Cozart grinned. "Oh, thanks, Tanaka. We'll be going right away. Enam, why don't you head off with Tanaka first?" He gently placed his son down. "Papa has to talk with Mama about something, but we won't be long." He patted his head.

The child glanced at his father and then, his mother. He then grinned and nodded obediently before running off along with the butler. The red-haired then stood up and turned to Ellen. "How was it? Did everything work out well?"

Ellen sighed and rubbed her head. "Which one? The mission or-?"

"Both." He cut off her sentence. "Ah…Actually, we can talk about the mission later. How was she? Still looking well?"

Ellen frowned slightly. "… Her body has grown weaker than last time… I'm not sure how long she's gonna last…" She muttered in a low voice, clenching her hand. "At this rate…she'll…"

Cozart was a bit worried at this. "Isn't there anything we could do to help her?"

She shook her head. "She wouldn't tell me…"

"I see…" He sighed. "So, did you tell her about Giotto?"

"No… I didn't… But, Lavina did mention about him…only a little…"

Cozart gulped nervously. "S-So… How did she-"

"…She doesn't know him…" Ellen replied his un-asked question. "She said… she knows no one called 'Giotto'."

The red-haired seemed not very surprised by this as he rubbed his temple. "Well… That is not unexpected… Of course, she wouldn't know Giotto…neither would he know her…" He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "After all, she's never met him before…"

Ellen scowled. "What's done is done. It can't be helped." She crossed her arms. "Is that all you want to talk about?"

He smiled. "There's still more but those can wait. First of all…" His eyes narrowed as he fished an envelope out from his pocket and handed it to her. "Here."

She stared questioningly at the paper before she took it from him. "What's this?" She asked, tearing the paper open. Cozart looked a bit hesitate as he answered. "Aria dropped by this noon and asked me to pass it to you."

She unfolded the paper and began reading while he continued to talk. "She says it's from one of your childhood friends." As she read through the letter, her eyes widened in shock.

"Wh-What? But…how?" She stuttered, her hands shaking. "Why?"

"Ellen?"

* * *

 **Back to the triplets...**

Tsuna was sitting near the large slide door, reading a book in his…no... in their bedroom. Tsubame was sitting at the opposite side of the door, with earphones on. She was spacing off as she gazed at the clear blue sky. There was a long awkward silence between the two ever since they've finished their breakfast. Neither of them said a word which only made things more … worse?

Tsuna stole a glance at his sister from time to time while reading his book. '…she still doesn't say anything yet…' Whenever they faced this kind of situation, their elder brother would always went off to the archery room to cool his head while he was to stay with their little sister and took care of her.

Unlike their hot-headed brother, Tsuna was the one with the calm, cool head and collective composure which made him seemed like he was the eldest among the three of them. Tsubame was the shyest, and the weakest of the three. Normally, she wouldn't say anything much but she's very expressive through her behavior. Sometimes, she's very obvious. But now…

'I can't tell what she's thinking at all!' Tsuna murmured in his mind, looking troubled. He was basically crying inside not knowing what to say to her. 'Nii-san… Why are you so useless at times like this? What should I say to make her feel stressless?'

"Nii-chan…"

"Hai!" He responded when she called him. She was still gazing at the sky. He began to sweat nervously. There was another long silence before she spoke again.

"Nii-san wa… dokou…?" She asked softly. Tsuna blinked. "Uh… He might be in the dojo with Kaa-san."

"Is that so…?"

…Another silence…

Tsuna sweat dropped. 'What else should I say?'

Tsubame glanced at her brother. "Nii-chan…I'm sorry for troubling you…"

"Eh?"

"I've been like this since yesterday… I know that you're trying to cheer me up but you don't know what to do or say… Both you and Nii-san… looked frustrated…"

The brunet blinked. So she was aware of that? He huffed. "I can't say that you're wrong… I am a bit troubled because you look troubled as well…" He told her.

She looked away guiltily. "Gomenasai…"

"You don't have to apologize, Tsubame. You haven't done anything yet." He closed his book and approached her side. "So… do want to tell me what's troubling you?" He asked.

Tsubame tensed up a bit when he sat down beside her. She curled her knees up and hugged them. She looked reluctant as she glanced at him a bit. She averted her eyes again. "Do you think of me as a nuisance, Nii-chan?" She started. "Am I a bother to both and Nii-san if we're together?"

Tsuna was surprised by this. "Wait! Why would you think that? Of course, we don-"

She interrupted him. "That's because I'm your sister, aren't I?" He was confused by this. "Heh?"

"Because I'm your sister… Your blood sibling… you couldn't bring yourself to think of me as an annoyance." She hugged her knees tighter, biting her lower lip. "Compared to you two, I'm weak. I can't do anything on my own." Her voice began to shake as she continued.

'No! No! She's gonna cry again!' Tsuna yelled to no one in particular.

"Nii-san is very strong and dertermined… Nii-chan's very clever and calm. But…I can't be any if that. I'm nobody…I'm always hiding cowardly behind you two and Kaa-san… even that on that day, I couldn't say anything to defend Kaa-san when MM' bad-mouthing her…" She sobbed. "There's no way you wouldn't think of me as an annoyance." She sniffed and buried her face in her knees.

Tsuna bit his lip. 'So… that's what she's been worrying about… Is that why she apologized that day…' He stared at his sister. "I'm such an idiot for not noticing this…'

Outside their room, Tsukuyomi gritted his teeth in agony as he listened to his siblings' conversation. She had bottled up her feelings… He was their brother yet he wasn't aware of their troubles. But…

"You're wrong, Tsubame!" He said, suddenly barged into the room with warning making his siblings jumped. "Nii-san?"

The black-haired narrowed his red eyes he stared at the blonde and the brunet. Slowly, he walked over to the two and knelt down in front of her. "Tsubame… We would never think of you that way. You're not a nuisance...nor a bother to us. You're our sister!" He told her. "It's okay to be weak, Tsubame… and I'm not as strong as you think I am. Tsuna is not as smart as you think he is either!"

Tsuna's eyes twitched slightly. 'Somehow… this annoys me a bit…'

Tsukuyomi gulped. "We're all weak, Tsubame, but it couldn't be helped! We're still kids! How could we be as strong as an adult?"

The brunet sweat dropped. 'Now he's using logic?'

"But, I wouldn't let it stop me." Tsukuyomi continued, standing up. "I will become stronger… stronger and stronger than ever… so that I can protect you two and Kaa-san!" He said bluntly. Tsuna blinked.

Tsukuyomi went quiet after saying and blushed madly. "UH…Ummm… I don't know what to say now…"

'That's it?!' Both Tsubame and Tsuna sweats dropped. 'That's all he's can say?'

Tsuan chuckled. "Well… Nii-san's never good at words as expected." He turned to the blonde. "Tsubame, what Nii-san's trying to say is that… You don't need to be sad just because you're weak." He expanded what Tsukuyomi meant to tell.

"Everyone can change, Tsubame. You might be weak right now, but… as times pass, you'll definitely become strong. So don't think that you'll be weak forever. Think that you have to stay strong and you'll become strong." Tsukuyomi nodded. 'Damn… this guy…Mind over matter…'

"But… wouldn't that make me more dependable on you two?" Tsubame asked. The two boys blinked and then grinned.

"So what's wrong with it? It's no big deal." said Tsuna. The blonde stared at him in confusion at this.

"Yup. We will be more worried if you run off alone rather than depending on us." Tsukuyomi added. "Listen, Tsubame. Don't you worry about being weak, Ok?" He pointed his thumb at both of them. "…because you have me and Tsuna, and we promise that we'll always be there to protect you until you become strong-willed."

Tsuna huffed. "Even if you've become strong, we'll still be there to protect you. That's what makes us family, doesn't it?"

Tusbame looked up at her brothers, eyes sparkled with joy, happiness and relief. "Is it really ok for me to be weak now?"

"Of course, it is."

"You really wouldn't think I'm an annoyance?"

"Of course not!"

She bit her lower lip slightly and clenched her hands. "Can I really become stronger?"

The two boys smiled at this. "Yes, you can! We'll become strong together… the three of us." Tsuna reached out his hand to her. "Won't we?"

Tsubame sniffed and rubbed her tears away. "Yes, we will!" She nodded and grabbed his hand and stood up.

"So, have you calmed down now?" Tsukuyomi asked; watching the blonde rubbing her tears dry.

She nodded and smiled. "Yes. Thank you, Nii-san, Nii-chan. I'm sorry for making you worried."

He shrugged. "Don't be. I'm glad you feel alright. By the way, Kaa-san asked me to call you guys. Aunt Aria is coming."

"Really? So… HE's coming, too?" Tsuna asked.

Tsukuyomi sighed. "As much as I don't want him to, but yes… he is coming…"

Suddenly, someone ran over to the three siblings and tackled over them. The three yelped in surprise as they all fell to the floor with the culprit. "And, here I am!" The culprit shouted cheerfully. He was a young boy with pure white spiky hair with light violet eyes. He also has a purple tattoo under his left eye. "Hi there, Tsuku-chan, Tsunayoshi-kun and… Tori-chan!" He greeted them with his bright smile.

Tsuna and Tsubame sweats dropped. "Konichiwa, Byakuran. You're as cheerful as always."

The boy, Byakuran nodded. "Yup! Cuz' that's what makes me 'Me'!"

"Enough of that and get the hell away, you marshmallow-freak! You're crushing us!" Tsukuyomi growled menacingly as he glared at the boy.

Byakuran smiled innocently. "Opps… Sorry about that." He stepped away to let the triplets stand up. "Hi again, Byakuran. Sorry about my brother." Tsuna apologized sheepishly.

The white-haired crushed it off. "It's okay. He's always like this."

"So, is Aunt Aria with you?" Tsukuyomi asked. The boy nodded.

"She's in the living room with your mother and Grandpa Talbot. Come on! Let's go and play!" He suggested with excitement.

"Let's go and greet them first." Tsuna said. "We can play afterwards."

"Hai!" They all responded in agreement.

Byakuran nudged Tsukuyomi's arm with his elbow. "Tsuku-chan, are you sure Tsunayoshi-kun's not the eldest?"

A vein twitched down the raven's head. "Of course, I am! And stop giving me weird nicknames! And why is he the only one referred by his name?!"

* * *

"Here's your tea." said the triplets' mother as she placed one cup down in front of Talbot and another one in front of another guests.

"Thank you. Sorry for dropping by with telling you first." said the guest to the black-haired.

"It's alright. I've already known that you would come, Aria." The black-haired responded. The guest smiled.

"Your intuition is as sharp as ever, miko-chan." She was a young lady with should-length dark green hair and sharp blue eyes. Part of her hair on both sides of her head was braided up and was tied at the back. She also has an orange clover tattoo below her left eye.

"So, what business does the boss of Giglio Nero have here?" asked Talbot. Aria took a sip of tea from the cup. "Am I not allowed to visit my friend for once in a while, Grandpa? Plus, I want to take a break from my overload work."

The old man sweat dropped. "In other words, you're just ditching your work." The female boss giggled innocently. "Who knows?"

The door to the room slided open as four heads peeked inside. "Ara… Konichiwa, Tsukuyomi-kun, Tsunayoshi-kun, Tsubame-chan." Aria greeted the triplets with her gentle smile. "It's been a while."  
"Konichiwa, Aria baa-san." The three responded in unison.

After that, their eyes met with their mother concerned looking blue ones. "A-Ano…" Tsukuyomi stuttered. "We'll be playing around the temple with Byakuran."

Aria smiled. "Why not? Byakuran, don't tease them too much. They're younger than you."

"Hai!" Byakuran replied energetically.

The triplets' mother stared at her children worryingly. "Tsubame, are you feeling fine now?" She asked. Tsubame flinched a bit and nodded. "Hai. Daijoubu desu. Nii-san and Nii-chan cheer me up." She replied, smiling.

Her mother looked relief. "Is that so? That's good to hear. Don't run off to far, kids."

"Hai!" With that, they all took off to go outside. Talbot watched the interaction between the black-haired and the siblings in amusement. "You look worried, child. Are you sure everything's fine?" He asked.

She nodded. "Yes, Grandpa. Everything's fine."

"If you need help, you can ask us anytime. You don't need to hold back." said Aria.

"It's okay, Aria. Really… It's ok."

The female boss sighed. "If you say so…"

… Silence…

"By the way, Aria, I received words that Giotto has returned to Japan recently." Talbot spoke, trying to start a conversation.

Aria nodded. "Yes. I heard that he's going to stay here for a while."

"Really? That's great. Maybe I should stop by his place. It's been so long since I've last seen him." said Talbot in wonder. "Maybe I should give the rings an upgrade while I'm at it."

The black-haired blinked questioningly. "Rings?"

Aria and Talbot glanced at each other nervously. "Uhh… Yes… Rings, the Vongola Rings."

"Heh… So, is this Giotto person the boss of the Vongola Family? Plus, Part of the Tri-ni-sette?" The black-haired asked.

The two guests nodded. "Yes, that's him. He was given the Vongola Rings five years ago after he created the Family. You haven't met him before?"

The black-haired shook her head. "No. Never before."

'Hmm… maybe I should make sure a bit…' Aria thought. "You know, it's quiet funny. That Giotto person, he looks really like Ieyasu."

Talbot tensed. 'Aria… I hope you know what you're saying…'

…

The two waited for the black-haired response. "Heh? Is that so? I'd like to meet him if I have a chance…"

The two mentally sighed. 'This is as expected but why am I feeling disappointed by that blank reply?'

Aria decided to say anything more about this and changed the subject. "Say…I bet Grandpa already told you about Kiyori, didn't he?"

Talbot nodded. "It was a few minutes before you came. Poor Kiyori… it's so sudden." He muttered sadly. The black-haired female said nothing and remained quiet. "They say it was an accident. Do you think it's an accident? I think not."

Aria looked thoughtful. "Hmm… I'm not sure either. There's no evidence of any foul play." She turned to the quiet female. "Should I investigate it?"

The black-haired stared at the tea cup in front of her for a while, thinking for a moment. "If you wish to do so, then I won't stop you." She responded.

"You've already foreseen this, haven't you? Your power of foresight is stronger and more accurate than mine after all." Aria remarked.

"… I do know that it will happen yet I still couldn't suppress my shock…"

"So you did foresee this. What do you think about this? Is he the one behind this again?" Aria asked curiously.

She received no response from her friend. She frowned. Talbot placed a hand on Aria shoulder before he turned to the other female.

"Young Lady, you are not trying to solve this on your own again, aren't you?" He asked. Her silence meant affirmative.

Aria looked worried at this. "You can't keep doing this! You won't last long if you continue to bear the burden all by yourself." She told the female. "You still have your Guardians. Why won't you call for help? We're here to help you anytime you need."

"Aria is right, young lady. You also have your children. If you suddenly disappear, how do you think they will feel?" Talbot supported the Giglio Nero Boss's statement. "Don't be so reckless."

No response from the black-haired. She said nothing. Aria rubbed her temple. "Is it that hard to ask for help?"

"No…" The black-haired finally responded. "..It is not… but… All of you are freed, Aria. You're already freed from this never ending cycle… All of you are leading a peaceful life now and I do not wish to burden you by asking you all to return to your duty…"

"But-"

"Nobody needs to be burdened." The black-haired interrupted. "I was the one who stared the whole thing so it's my responsibility and duty to put an end to this."

Aria and Talbot wanted to protest this, but for some reasons, they couldn't. Because of the strong will in her eyes, they couldn't stop her. They let out a sigh.

"Well… If that's what you wish…But, if you really do need help, make sure to tell us, ok?"

The black-haired nodded. "Thank you... both of you."

"By the way, young lady, you haven't told me why you have summoned me yet." Talbot said, catching both females' attention. "Though I can tell that this is something concerns with your children."

The black-haired nodded. "Yes, Grandpa. I have a request for you." She told him. "Lately, the three of them have begun to emit a faint presence of their power. In no time, they would definitely be able to light their flames as well."

"Heh… Then… so that Byakuran as well!" Aria blurted in realization.

Talbot could already tell what she was ging to ak him to. "Let me guess, you want me to create something that will help them suppress their powers and flames until they'll be to control them?"

The black-haired nodded. Talbot thought for a while and grinned. "Well, sure. I agree to do it, however… to do so, there's a requirement for this."

The two women blinked. "What might that be?"

"Blood…" Talbot replied. "I need the bloods from all your Guardians."

The black-haired looked troubled by this. "The Guardians? But…"

"Do not worry, my dear. I already have one of them with me." Talbot assured her. "…however I still in need of the remaining four which includes you two." He pointed at the women. "As for the other two, if I explain the reason to them, I'm sure they'll agree to give me some as well."

The black-haired looked relief at this. "Well… that's great…" said Aria.

* * *

 **At the Vongola Mansion…**

"Uncle Knuckle, is this where you're staying?" asked a girl in wonder as she stared arund the large hall. Beside her, her brother's mouth was side open. "What an extremely enormous house to the extreme!"

Knuckle sighed. "Yeah…" He rubbed his neck nervously while he continued to walk through the hall with the children. Bob was walking in front of him as he was leading the Sun Guardian and the children to Giotto's study room.

"Master Giotto should be taking a break at the time." said the butler.

Knuckled was sulking. "How am I going to explain this to him to the limit…?" he grumbled solemnly. They came to a stop in front of a large door.

"Just tell him what you want to do, Master Knuckle. I'm sure yu'll be alble to sort this out." Bob assured the priest. "Now then…" He knocked twice on the door. "Master Giotto, Master Knuckle has returned and he wishes to speak to you."

"Come on in!" He opened the door when he received a response. Knuckle entered the room along with the kids; hiding behind.

"Uhh… Hi there, Knuckle. Welcome back." Giotto greeted, setting the papers down before standing up. Knuckle greeted back. "Hi there, Giotto. As busy as always, aren't you?"

The blonde grinned. "Yeah… I'm taking a short break now… By the way, did you enjoy your time with your family?"

Knuckled flinched. "Uh…that…"

"Uncle Knuckle?" A small female voice caught everyone's attention. Giotto looked down and spotted a young girl with short orange hair behind Knuckle. "Who is this man?" She asked.

Knuckle ruffled her head playfully. "Uh… yeah... This is my boss, Giotto." He turned to the blonde. "giotto, this is Sasagawa Kyoko and her brother,"He ruffled another kid's head; a boy with silver hair, " Sasagawa Ryohei… My sister's kids."

Giotto smiled and knelt down. "Hello there, Ryohei, Kyoko. I'm Giotto. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too, Uncle Giotto." Kyoko responded with a typical shy voice.

"Nice to me you to the extreme, Uncle Giotto."

Giotto raised a brow. 'To the extreme…?' He glanced at Knuckle. "So… like… why are they with you, Knuckle? Are they here to sleepover?"

Knuckle looked nervously at Giotto. "Uh…about that… Giotto… Can you let the kids stay here with me… in this mansion…to the limit…?" He was very shaking yet he still managed to add his catchphrase at the end.

Giotto blinked. "Huh?"

 **There! Another chapter done. I hope you guys enjoy this and I apologize for the slow updates. Also... I've noticed that I didn't reveal the mother's name yet... Well... I think I will when she met with Giotto in the next chapter. Wanna try guessing what her name is? :)**


	7. New Friends and Troubles?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Khr.**

 **Chapter 7, New Friends and Troubles?**

"Alright, kids! Ready to go?" asked Elena energetically, grinning at the children in front of her. The children nodded. She smiled. "Hey, if you're ready, give me a cheerful 'YES!'" She added.

"Yes!/ YES TO THE EXTREME!" came the energetically replies from Takeshi and Ryohei and other small and timid response from Hayato, Bianchi, Mukuro, Chrome and Kyoko. No response from Kyoya…expectedly.

Elena nodded and smiled at their response. Kaoru rolled her eyes and sighed as she stood beside the blonde. Elena glanced at the kids and saw Kyoko fidgeted nervously. She huffed. Well…it was her first time going to school with anyone other than her brother and she still hasn't gotten used to her new surrounding yet…unlike her fire-up and extreme brother.

'But well… Knuckle did say that she can fit in to a new environment very quickly so she'll be fine…' thought Elena.

"… those two… are her children…" Hearing Kaoru muttered something; the blonde turned to the female skylark and saw her staring at the Sasagawa siblings. "…The girl does resemble her mother…"

Elena grinned and inched closer to the Japanese female. "…and the boy looks just like his father. Family genes, I guess…" She giggled. She placed her hand on the other female's shoulder. "I'll leave them in your hands, Kaoru. Be careful on your way."

Kaoru brushed the hand away. "It's just sending the children to school… not going to battle field. Worries aren't necessary."

Elena giggled. "I know. Just make sure not to let Kyoya and Mukuro clash against each other."

Their conversation was interrupted when Bob approached them. "My ladies, the car is ready to leave." He informed them. Kaoru nodded and turned to the kids. "All of you, into the car right now." She told them. The children responded with a nod and they all headed off to where the vehicle was waiting for them.

* * *

 **At the Shimon Estate**

"Here's your bag, young master." said Tanaka while helping the red-headed Shimon boy strapping on his bag pack. "Thank you, Ji-chan." The boy responded with a polite smile. He then looked around.

"Where's Papa and Mama? I thought we're going to school together." He asked. The old man stood up. "Unfortunately, Master Cozart has some unfinished paper works to handle so he could only see you off, young master."

The boy's head dropped a bit, knowing that his father wouldn't be able to send him to school. "I do apologize but he did promise that he will definitely come and pick you up."

This made Enma cheered up a bit and he grinned. "Okay. So…where are they?" He asked again.

"Ah…they should be coming right-"

"Give it a rest already, Don Shimon!" came a loud growl of a certain female from inside the mansion. Tanaka sweat dropped. He didn't even get to finish his sentence yet…

"Aww…come on, Ellen. You don't need to call me 'Don' all the time." This time, it was Cozart's voice responding to his wife.

"I'll call you whatever I want. Anyway, we should get going or else Enma would be la- Hey! Wait! Let go of me!"

"Nope! I won't until you kiss me."

"Enough with your ridiculous act! I'll be back right after this and today I have no mission either!"

"Nahh… I don't care. Come on, Ellen. Just on the cheek, please…"

"No!"

"Then, I won't let go of you either."

"Whoa! Hey! Where the hell are you touching, you idiot? Enma is waiting for us!"

"Oi! Cozart!"

"Nope!"

"I said… LET THE HELL GO OF ME, YOU CLINGY PERVERT!"

There was a loud, thunderous roar echoing through the mansion, followed by a loud crashing 'THUD'; making the entire estate shook for a moment. Every single person in the mansion sighed and shook their head, knowing what was going on. 'And…there they go again…' they muttered.

Tanaka sighed and rubbed his temple. 'When will he ever learn?'

Enma only blinked, staring inside the mansion with questioning eyes. 'What was that?' He thought.

Then, he spotted his mother appearing from the left hall; her face red from embarrassment, along with his father; who was rubbing the back of his head with a painful expression.

The boy titled his head to the side. Ellen smiled and approached her son. "Ready to go, Enma?" She asked, ruffled his head. The red-haired stared back and forth at his parents before he grinned nodded.

"Good. Now, let's go." She said, stepping into the car. She could feel Cozart smiling at her, but she blushed and looked away. Cozart grinned sheepishly and knelt down to Enma's eye level. "I'm really sorry about today, Enma. But I will pick you up together with Mama, Okay?" He told the kid.

Enma smiled and nodded. "Okay, Papa. Be sure to finish your paper works on time."

"Hai hai…Itterashai." He ruffled the boy's hair.

"Ittekimasu."

Cozart watched as his son got into the car beside the passenger seat. He waved one more time at Ellen; who responded with a menacing glare, before the car drove off. When the vehicle was out of the view, Cozart shivered as he sensed a murderous aura from his butler. 'Ah...shit…'

Slowly, he turned around to face the old man who was glaring at him. "Uh…umm…" He trembled. "Hi?"

No response… "Tanaka...?"

"I supposed you're having fun teasing Lady Ellen, Master?"

Cozart gulped. "Y-Yeah?"

"Master Cozart." The young boss immediately froze and trembled, hearing the stern voice of the old butler. "Hai?"

The butler smiled sweetly. "May I know what got destroyed this time?"

This made the man shook even more. Sweats rolled down from the side of his head as he replied. "T-There's a huge gaping hole on the left side of the left hall?"

Tanaka smiled became sweeter. "I see… Well then, are you mentally prepared for your extra paper works?"

"Ack!"

"Also, if she tries to kill you when she returns, know that I won't step in to stop her this time."

Cozart turned pale as he watched his butler walked away. "Wait! If you do that, she'll definitely kill me this time! Tanaka, WAITTTTT!"

* * *

"We're here." said Kaoru to the kids as their car pulled over in front of the school gate. All the children in the car got off as soon as she opened the car door for them. Once they all stepped out of the car, they stood beside it.

"After class, Alaude and I will come and pick you so make sure to wait in one place. That way, it'll be easier to find you guys." Said Kaoru to the kids. They all replied with a 'Yes'.

"And you two…" She glanced at Ryohei and Kyoko. " I was asked by Giotto to enroll you two to study here so I'll be going with you to the Director's room." She told the siblings.

"We're very grateful to the extreme, Aunt Kaoru!" shouted Ryohei, lifting his fists up. Kyoko smiled. "Thank you very much, Aunt Kaoru."

Kaoru's eyes softened at this but her cold expression remained unchanged. "Be sure to support one another, especially to Ryohei and Kyoko. They're new here so make sure to get along well, too."

"Hai." The kids replied, except for Kyoya. He scoffed and crossed his arms. "I dislike crowding…" He muttered.

Mukuro smirked when he heard this. "Come on now, Kyoya. We're under the same roof right now and we're practically a family. Since you're one of the oldest among us, you should take good care of the younger ones." He said, grinning. "Isn't that right, Onii-chan?"

Kyoya frowned and glared at the boy. "Do I need to remind you that you're the same age as I am, pineapple-head?"

A vein twitched from Mukuro's head. "Kufufufu… Kyoya, what did you just call me?" He asked, smiling; black aura flowing from him.

The young skylark smirked and repeated. "Pineapple-Head…"

Mukuro started to emit more menacing aura, threatening the enemy in front of him, who in return snorted and emitted an equally threatening intense. Every single kid who've walked past the two trembled in fears and quickly ignored the two who were battling against one another with glares.

Hayato shook his head as he was the two. Chrome looked worryingly at her brother. Kyoko was starting to get scared, too. Noticing this, Bianchi decided to step in.

"All right, you two, cut it out. Though the two of you are one of the oldest, don't forget that I'm the eldest around here." said the pink-haired, poking the two boys' forehead with her fingers…really really hard.

"Ouch! Now that's not nice, Bianchi." Mukuro winced, rubbing his forehead.

"I'll bite anyone who dares to poke me to death!" snarled Kyoya menacingly, snatching his tonfas out. Bianchi, on the other hand, ignored the two.

"We'll be going, Aunt Kaoru. Thank you for sending us to school." She said. Kaoru nodded in acknowledgement. She was amused by the girl's behavior. No one other than the adults in the family dared to interfered Kyoya and Mukuro like this. She most certainly was Larvina's girl.

"Come on, guys. Let's get to our class or else we'll be late." The pink-haired pointed out and walked towards the gates, dragging her brother and the other kids along with her, minus Kyoya and Mukuro who was still glaring at her.

Kaoru glanced at her son, who remained behind the group. "Kyoya, would you mind showing me the Director's room?" She asked. Kyoya looked at her and nodded before he began walking towards the building. "Come, Ryohei, Kyoko. Let's go." She said. The two kids nodded and the three of them walked after Kyoya into the school.

* * *

 **Elsewhere…**

She stood sternly in front of a gravestone with her calm, emotionless face; one she would never show her children. The wind blew passed the area, shifting her loosely tied black hair to the side. She glanced at the gravestone for a while. She then picked up some purifying water from the bucket beside her and splashed it at the gravestone. She then sat down, clasping her hands together and closing her eyes.

Her surrounding was silent and peaceful but a solemn atmosphere has covered up the area. It was the cemetery so it's not very surprising. She continued to stay like that for a moment before she stood up. "Rest in peace…" She muttered softly under her breathe.

"Oh my…You're visiting her grave after all? It's rare to see you outside from the shrine." She turned to the side to see Aria, smiling at her with a banquet of lilies in her hand. The green-haired approached her friend and placed the flowers down and offered her prayers as well. Neither of the two said anything while she was doing so. There was an awkward silence between the two.

"Hey, you're not blaming yourself for this, aren't you?" Aria asked, staring at the other female. The woman retained her emotionless composure but Aria could tell that she was indeed blaming herself. Aria smiled and placed her hand on her friend's shoulder.

"It's kinda nostalgia seeing your emotionless face, but hey…don't put anymore burden on yourself more than you already do."

The black-haired slightly clenched her hands. "…What else am I supposed to do then? I've failed to protect her… I've let her died…" She murmured.

Aria shook her head. "This again? Don't think like that. Do you think Kiyori would be happy if she sees you like this?" The black-haired lowered her head slightly, making her bangs covering her eyes.

Aria stared at her and glanced at her hands. The green-haired's eyes narrowed as she gently hold her friend's hand up. "Hey…your hands are getting colder. Your skin has become paler than last time, too."

The black-haired said nothing. "… Don't push yourself too much. Let your body rest a bit before you continue to do something stressful." She grabbed the woman's shoulders. "I know that it's no use telling you to stop whatever you're doing but if you want to live long enough to see your children grow up, stop being ruthless."

The black-haired still didn't respond and gently pushed her hands away. She took a step back and turned around, facing her back against Aria. The Giglio Nero boss sighed. She was just being too persistent.

"What about her children? How are they doing right now?" The black-haired asked. Aria looked up. "You mean those two siblings?" The black-haired nodded. "I heard that they were taken in by her brother. And now, the two of them are living with their uncle at the Vongola Mansion."

"I see…" was the female's response before she walked away. Aria watched worryingly as her friend slowly disappeared from her sight. Placing her hand on her hip, she glanced at the gravestone and huffed. "Did you see that, Kiyori? She is as thick-headed as always, isn't she?"

* * *

 **At school**

When Enma walked into his class, he spotted his friends; Tsuna, Takeshi and Hayato, talking with one another as they always do. "Good morning, guys." He greeted as he approached his seat which was beside them.

"Good morning, Enma." Tsuna greeted back as he usually. "Yo, Enma." Takeshi grinned and Hayato scowled. Pretty much normal response from them…

"What are you guys talking about? Lemme join in." said Enma as he set his bag down and taking his things out.

Hayato scoffed. "It's nothing interesting. We're just talking about the new kids that have moved in with Uncle Knuckle last week."

Enma raised a brow. "Hehhh… New kids? Sounds interesting. What're they like?"

Takeshi grinned. "I heard that they're Uncle Knuckle's relatives and he's taking care of them. Pretty much the same as me. The two of them are siblings. The big brother is kinda…pretty much cheerful…maybe?"

"Tsk! Cheerful? More like being annoying…He's too loud and irritating." Hayato grumbled in annoyance. "Now, now, Hayato, that's not very nice." said Takeshi before he continued. "…the little girl on the other hand…she's very quiet at first but somehow, she warmed up to us very much quickly."

"Ohh… They sound like good persons. So… are they gonna be in this school?"

Tsuna replied this time. "Yeah. Hayato told me that they'll be starting their class today. I'd really like to meet them."

Takeshi grinned and crossed his arms behind his head. "Then, why don't we go meet them at lunch break?" He suggested. "All of us have planned to have lunch together. I'll introduce you guys to them there."

Tsuna nodded. "Thanks, Takeshi. I really appreciate it. More new friends… Somehow, I feel excited. I wonder what class they will be in."

"Well…I'm pretty sure it's not gonna be this class. Turf-top looks older than us." Hayato pointed out.

Tsuna and Enma blinked. "Turf-top?"

Takeshi chuckled. "That's the nickname that Hayato gave to Ryohei."

… The two sweats dropped. 'Hayato sure loves to give everyone weird nicknames…'

* * *

 **At Tsubame and Chrome's class**

Tsubame and Chrome were chatting as always when the door clattered opened and their teacher walked in. "Good morning, class."

The whole class immediately went quiet while the students went back to their own seat. The teacher smiled. "So, did you guys enjoy your weekends?"

"Yes, teacher."

"Oh, I'm glad you did, and I do believe that you've finished your homework that I gave you last week."

The class groaned at this. Chrome opened her notebook. "Were you able to finish it, Tsubame?" She asked.

The blonde smiled and nodded. "Yeah. There were some parts that confuses me but I've got Nii-chan explaining it to me."

 _Nii-chan?_ Chrome blinked. "You mean, Tsuna? That's good for you. Tsuna is very reliable when it comes to studies." _Although, he is very clumsy from time to time…_

The blonde nodded proudly. "What about you, Chrome?"

"Hayato helped us out." The purple-haired replied. "Hayato… He is pretty sharp, too. Wow…I wonder how the two of them were able to get good grades…" Tsubame murmured. Chrome nodded. "They might be kids with super brains."

Tsubame giggled sheepishly. "Yeah, sure. Maybe they are."

"Class, quiet down, please." The two of them stopped talking, so did the others when the teacher said this. "I will check the homework later. More importantly, today, we'll be having a new student joining our class."

The entire class looked excited at this. The teacher grinned. "Excited now, aren't we? Now then…" She turned to the door. "You can come in now." The door opened and a young girl with short, orange hair entered. She looked nervous as she timidly stood beside the teacher's desk. At the same time, the teacher had wrote her name on the board. She then placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Okay, Kyoko-chan, why don't you introduce yourself to everyone?" She said encouragingly. The girl nodded and glanced at the other kids.

"Ohayo, everyone. My name is Sasagawa Kyoko. From today on I'll be studying in this class together with you all. I hope we'll get along well." She beamed cheerfully.

All the boys blushed. Tsubame blinked. The timid and nervous air around the girl seemed to have faded away when she introduced herself. 'She adapts very quickly to the class…just like Mother said.' She thought.

The teacher smiled. "Thank you, Kyoko-chan. Let's see…your seat is…there." She pointed at the free seat beside Tsubame. "There's a free seat beside Tsubame-chan. You can sit there."

"Yes, Ma'am." Kyoko nodded and made her way to her new seat. She smiled at Tsubame and sat down in her sat. "Hello there, Chrome." She greeted the purple haired beside the blonde. "I guess we'll be in the same class from today onwards."

Chrome nodded. "I hope we'll get along well." The orangenette smiled. "Me, too."

"By the way, Kyoko… This is my friend, Sawada Tsubame." Chrome gestured towards the blonde. "Konichiwa."

Kyoko nodded. "Konichiwa, Tsubame. Yoroshiku ne."

The blonde smiled. "Umm. Nice to meet you, too."

The teacher coughed, catching everyone's attention. "All right, class. You can chat later. Let's begin our homeroom, shall we?"

"Hai."

And… the class went on.

* * *

"Wow! Your bento looks delicious as always , Tsuna." Enma wondered as he glanced at his friend's lunch box. Tsuna smiled. "Thanks, Enma. Yours also look yummy, too."

It was lunch break at the time and the two of them were on the roof-top with Takeshi and Hayato. They were waiting the others to arrive.

"Say, Tsuna, your mother's the one who always making your lunch, right?" asked Takeshi, unwrapping his lunchbox.

The brunet nodded. "Kaa-san's very good at cooking and sometimes, we also help her out."

"Heh…that's cool. I can't really cook anything other sushi."

Enma sighed. "At least… it's better than not being able to cook anything…"

The two boys sweats dropped. "Maa maa… Don't worry, Enma. I'm sure you'll be able to cook someday. Right, Hayato?" Takeshi turned to the silver-haired.

"Wait! Hayato can cook, too?" Tsuna wondered and inched closer to Hayato; his eyes sparkling in amazement. "That's so cool, Hayato! I wouldn't have thought you could."

Hayato flushed red for a moment at the boy's compliment. He smirked and crossed his arms across his chest. "Of course, I can! Cooking is nothing but a child's play." He remarked.

Enma stared at his friends. 'Hayato…you're sparkling… What's that? Are those puppy ears and tail on him?'

Takashi grinned and nodded. "Yup! Hayato sure can cook. But, you know what? Whenever he tries to cook, he always ends up burning down the entire kitchen because of his hot temper."

The silver-haired shot him a deadly glare. "Oi! What the hell are you saying?!"

"Also, wheneven he cooks, he always uses his fireworks and he always gete scolded by Uncle G."

"NO, I DIDN'T! Stop saying those things in front of Tsuna!" Hayato growled, launching himself at Takeshi, shutting his mouth. "And those aren't fireworks! They're dynamites!"

"Heh? But they look more like firework to me."

Enma and Tsuna stepped back a bit as they watched their two friends argued. "They sure do get along well, don't they?" Enma commented.

"Yeah…they sure do."

A new person joined in the conversation. "What part of them make like they get along well?" The two turned around and saw Tsukuyomi and Mukuro with another silver-haired boy beside them. The boy's eyes fired up and he immediately dashed towards the two arguing. "DOHHHH! WHAT'S THIS? A BOXING TRAINING? LET ME JOIN YOU GUYS TO THE EXTREMEEEEE!" He shouted.

"Oh, hi there, Ryohei. Nice to see you here."

"LET GO OF ME, YOU TURF-TOP AND SHUT THE HELL UP! YOU'RE ANNOYING THE OTHERS!"

"WHAT WAS THAT, OCTOPUS-HEAD?"

Tsuna and Enma blinked in confusion by the abruptly unfolded scene before them. 'What's just happened?'

Seeing his brother's confused look, Tsukuyomi let out a sigh and sat down beside the brunet. "Don't worry. I'm as confused as you two are." He mumbled, unwrapping his bento.

"Kufufufu. I have been telling you repeatedly that he's not a normal kid, haven't I?" Mukuro said as he also sat down elsewhere around the group.

"Big brother." They heard Chrome's voice and turned to see her along with Tsubame and Kyoko, standing at the doorway. "Everyone's already here? I'm sorry for making you wait."

"Don't worry, Chrome. We've just got here, too." Mukuro glanced at the orange-haired. "Heh… so she's in your class?"

Chrome nodded. "Ryohei's also in your class? I thought he's older than us." She sat down beside her brother.

"Kufufufu… Indeed, he is. But, thanks to his loud voice, it's not difficult to figure out that his class is right above mine."

Kyoko sighed. "Mou…Onii-chan… I'm really sorry if my brother causes troubles." She apologized. Mukuro grinned. "No need. This is how he always is, isn't it?"

"Thank you for understanding."

Tsukuyomi stared at the new girl joining them today. He then turned to look at her brother who was still arguing with Hayato. 'They're siblings? They don't really look alike.'

"Onii-chan! Stop fighting already!" Kyoko walked over to her brother and Hayato, helping Takeshi separating the two from fighting. Tsukuyomi sighed. "Yup…they're totally different. Right, Tsuna?"

He received no response. Raising a brow, he turned to see his brother, staring at the orange-haired. "Tsuna?"

Tsuna stopped spaced out and turned to him. "Uh, yeah. Sorry. What were you saying?"

"Uh…are you okay? It's not like you to space so suddenly." Asked the black-haired. Tsuna shook his head. "No. It's nothing, don't worry." The raven sighed. "Well... if you say so."

"Hey, guys, sorry for taking so long." Bianchi appeared from the door. Hayato noticed his sister and turned pale when her eyes narrowed. "Hayato, you're not fighting again, aren't you?" Hayato's face turned blue from pale and he immediately stood straight. "No! No! Of course not, Aneki!" He stuttered. Everyone chuckled. Hayato was scared of his sister more than anything else in this world.

After that, Ryohei and Hayato decided to settle their argument later and went to sat down beside the group along with Takeshi and Kyoko.

"Alright, now that everyone has settled down, I would like to introduce our new family members to our friends. " Takeshi said, throwing an arm around Ryohei. "Guys, this is Ryohei and Kyoko. They've started living with us last week." He introduced.

"NICE TO MEET YOU TO THE EXTREME! MY NAME IS SASAGAWA RYOHEI TO THE EXTREME!" Ryohei shouted on the top of his lungs making everyone around him covered their eyes.

'This guy is way too loud!' Tsukuyomi grumbled in annoyance. He rubbed his ears. Kyoko looked nervously at the others. "I'm Sasagawa Kyoko. Nice to meet you guys. I'm really sorry about my brother. This is just how he is."

Tsuna held up his hand. "No. Don't worry. We don't mind. Right, guys?" Everyone nodded. Whether he's loud or not, pretty much everyone would get used to it sooner or later.

"Well then, I guess it's our turn to introduce ourselves. I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi. You can call me Tsuna. It's a pleasure to meet you guys."

He elbowed his brother, who huffed and rubbed the back of his neck, to do the same. "Sawada Tsukuyomi. I don't have a more shorter name like Tsuna. Nice to meet you."

Tsubame bowed slightly. "My name is Sawada Tsubame. I hope we can be friends." Kyoko giggled lightly at the blonde. "We're already friends, Tsubame." The blonde's face flushed pink as she nodded slightly.

Enma scratched his cheek nervously. "Umm… I'm Kozato Enma. Nice to meet you, Ryohei, Kyoko."

Kyoko smiled. "Nice to meet you guys. Say…I've been wondering…Tsubame has the same last name as Tsuna and Tsukuyomi. By any chance...are you three…?"

Takeshi grinned. "You're right, Kyoko. These three are siblings."

"In fact, the three of them are triplets." Bianchi added. "Pretty much surprising?"

Kyoko was surprised hearing this. "Triplets? Is that true, Tsubame?" She turned to look at her friend with excited eyes. Tsubame nodded timidly. "Wow! This is my first time meeting someone who's triplet! Which one of you guys the eldest?"

Tsukuyomi raised his hand. "Eldest one here. Tsubame's the youngest one."

"Oh wow. So…that means Tsuna's the second eldest?" Tsuna grinned and nodded. "Yup."

"That's unexpected. I thought Tsuna would be the eldest since you look more…" Kyoko didn't dare to continue what she was saying because of the triplets' presence. "He looks more composed and mature compared to Tsukuyomi, doesn't he?" Bianchi continued with a smirk.

Kyoko laughed nervously. "Ah…ahahaha….yeah…Er… I mean no offense, Tsuna, Tsukuyomi."

Tsukuyomi's eyes twitched in annoyance. "I don't mind at all. It's not like I ain't used to this already."

"Nii-san… your eyes are not smiling…" Tsubame pointed out. Kyoko was worried by this. "Ahh. I'm really sorry, Tsukuyomi. I didn't really mean it in a bad way." She apologized.

Ryohei stood up and raised his fist. "Hey! WHOEVER BULLIES KYOKO HAS TO GO THROUGH ME FIRST! TO THE EXTREME!"

"He wasn't even bullying her…" Hayato grumbled. Tsuna sighed and lightly slapped his brother's arm. "Nii-san, you're being a bit rude to her."

Tsukuyomi blinked. "Huh? Wait! I didn't even do anything yet. She was the one be- Ack!" Again, he was hit by his brother. He rubbed the place where he was hit and glared at the brunet. "Now, just what is your….?" His sentence died down when he received a sweet smile from Tsuna. "You were saying?"

He gulped. A sweetly smiling Tsuna meant bad news plus after school lectures and he hated that. He sighed, surrendered. He turned to Kyoko and scratched the back of his head. "Sorry for being rude." He said briefly. Tsuan huffed and smiled apologetically at her.

"I'm sorry for my brother's behavior, Kyoko. Even though his action looks a bit misleading, he didn't mean anything bad so you don't need to worry."

Kyoko shook her head and smiled. "No, it's alright. I understand."

Mukuro chuckled. "No wonder he's always mistaken as the eldest. Kufufufu." Bianchi nodded in agreement. "Yup. Just look at the gaping differences in being a gentleman between the two. That's how you should treat a girl, Tsukuyomi. Learn from your brother, **Onii-san**." She said with an innocent smile.

The raven popped a vein and he turned to glare at the two in annoyance. "I can clearly hear what you're saying and I don't need you to lecture me about it!"

"Ho. Really? If you don't want the others to lecture you, how about you trying to be a more responsible big brother, Sawada Tsukuyomi?" Mukuro smirked.

"Are you trying to pick a fight with me, you stupid pineapple head? Say that to yourself! You're the one who always causes troubles for Chrome!" The raven argued back.

Chrome and Tsubame watched quietly without saying anything. "I guess they're getting along well… I think…" Chrome muttered quietly.

Tsubame nodded. "They sure are getting along better than we thought."

At the time, Kyoya was lying on his back on the top of the small of the rooftop where the group was. He yawned slightly and turned over to the side. "You guys… you're too noisy…"

* * *

When the school was finally over for the say, all the kids ran out from the school building to their awaiting parents and some just walked home on their own. "Aunt Kaoru." Kyoko beamed cheerfully, running over to the female skylark who was waiting for them in front of the gates. Chrome and Tsubame were right behind her. Kaoru patted the girl's head. "How was your first da, Kyoko? Did you enjoy it?" she asked.

Kyoko grinned and nodded. "Yes. Very much. I made new friends today thanks to Chrome and the others." She turned to the purple-haired girl. "Arigatou, Chrome. I really gave fun today."

Chrome blushed and smiled nervously. "I'm glad you like it…" She murmured softly. Kaoru noticed the blonde girl beside Chrome. Tsubame also noticed this and bowed politely. "Konichiwa, Kaoru-san."

Kaoru responded with a nod. "Good evening to you, too, Tsubame. Are you here on your own today?" She asked, taking notice of the two missing boys.

The blonde shook her head. "Nii-san and Nii-chan are coming with Hayato and the others." She turned around and glanced at the entrance. "There they are." She said, gesturing to her two brothers and the other kids. They all walked over to where the girls were.

"Good evening, Kaoru-san." Tsuna was the first one to greet the older female politely once they approached the girls.

"Good evening, Tsunayoshi. Always the gentleman, aren't you?" Since she received no greeting from Tsukuyomi, she only gave him an acknowledging nod. This resulted in Tsukuyomi being scolded by Tsuna for not greeting the others, much to the raven's dismay.

She turned to look at Enma who was timidly staring at her. She stared back at him making him flinched slightly. He gulped. 'She's…so carnivorous…. Just like Mama…'

Another car parked beside the school gates and a certain red-haired man stepped out from the car. He looked around and spotted Enma. "Hey, Enma!" He shouted and waved at his son. "PAPA!" Enma saw this and eagerly ran over to his father, flinging himself into the man's open arms. "You really came!" He said happily.

Cozart laughed and happily carried his son up. "Of course, I'd come. I promised you, didn't I?" Ellen came out from the passenger's seat and approached the two. "It's a miracle that you were able to get all those documents done in time." She smiled and ruffled her son's hair. "Hey, Enma. How was your day?"

Enma grinned. "It was great! Today, we've got new friends!" She said, pointing towards the Vongola household. Ellen noticed Kaoru and the other kids, along with the triplets and two more new kids. "Ryohei, Kyoko, this is my Papa and Mama. Papa, Mama, these two are my new friends, Ryohei and Kyoko." The red-head introduced.

"OHHHH! YOUR FATHER LOOKS JUST LIKE YOU TO THE EXTREME!" Ryohei shouted, energetically. "YOUR MOM IS ALSO SUPER BEAUTIFUL TO THE EXTREME! I'm SASAGAWA RYOHEI TO THE EXTREME!"

"Mou…Onii-chan, you're disturbing everyone." Kyoko turned to the two and smiled apologetically. "Hello. I'm Sasagawa Kyoko. I'm so sorry of my brother is being a bit extreme."

Cozart and Ellen sweats dropped. 'Siblings? The girl is not very loud. This is the first time I met him but why do I get this Deja vu feeling?' Kaoru noticed their confused looking face. "These two are Kiyori's children and now, they're staying with her brother."

"Oh…I see…No wonder…" Cozart murmured. 'I forgot that Kiyori is Knuckle's sister…"Ellen's eyes narrowed slightly. 'Kiyori… Knuckle…' She brushed off her thoughts and glanced at the female skylark. "Hey, Kaoru. How's life going around you?"

Kaoru let out an exhausted sigh at the question. "My hands are very much full with the two ladies ever since we've moved in together." Ellen grinned. "Thought so…"

Kaoru glanced at Ellen and then at Cozart who was chatting with Enma and the other kids. When did they get all buddy-buddy anyway? Kaoru smirked. "At least, I'm not as busy as you are, Ellen." Knowing what the female was complying, Ellen huffed and rubbed the back of her neck. "Tell me about it… You're lucky that your husband is calm, collective and aloof….unlike mine."

Cozart immediately turned up to look at her. "Hmm? Were you guys talking about me?" he asked, sounding happy. Ellen glared at him. "No, we're not!"

Tsubame stared at her friends, especially Enma, happily chatting and interacting with their family. A certain thought appeared inside her and she lowered her head slightly in sad realization. She tensed when she felt someone ruffled her head. She looked up to see Tsukuyomi grinning at her. Tsuna was also beside her, giving her an assuring smile. She smiled at the two and nodded. Everything's going to be fine. She definitely didn't need to be sad or worried.

Kaoru looked at the school building and Kyoya, walking over to them. She looked over to the other kids. "Children, we're ready to go so you guys can get in the car." She told them. They all nodded and said their goodbyes to the triplets and the Shimon Family before entering the car. Kyoya was the last one to enter.

Kaoru then turned to the triplets. "Tsukuyomi, do you want me to drop you guys at your house?" She asked. "You guys can come with us." She told them.

"Wait, Kaoru. Your car's already full. They can come with us instead." Cozart suggested.

The triplets looked at each other. Tsunayoshi smiled. "Don't worry, Uncle Cozart, Kaoru-san. We can walk home like always. You guys can go on."

"Are you sure, Tsunayoshi? It just the three of you." said Ellen in concern. Tsukuyomi huffed and crossed his arms behind his haed. "Yes, we're sure, old lady. Just so you know, this ain't the frist time we walk home on your own. We can take care of ourselves just fine."

Ellen was a bit irritated by his attitude. 'Why you little…' Noticing how his wife started to lose her temper, Cozart quickly stepped in. "Ah! Is that so? Very well, then. Be careful on your way home." He said, waving.

The triplets nodded. "Hai! Bye, everyone. See you guys tomorrow." Tsuna and Tsubame responded. "Bye bye. Take care." The three then walked away from the scene, chatting with each other as they did so.

Kaoru said her goodbye and left as well. Cozart and Ellen watched till the triplets gradually went of the sight. "I still don't like that kid's attitude…" Ellen grumbled. Cozart grinned. "Really? I think it's okay since he kinda reminds me of you that way."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

* * *

"Tsubame, you were sulking again." Tsukuyomi said calmy while strolling down the quiet street with his siblings. Tsubame tensed and clenched her bag pack tightly. "I'm sorry…"

"I am not telling you to apologize!" The raven said as he stopped walking. "Seriously, you need to stop being so negative. I already told you that you're not alone."

"Nii-san, lower your voice a bit if possible…" Tsuna murmured. He placed his hand on the blonde's shoulder. "Tsubame, are you still bothered by anything?"

Tsubame shook her head. "No. I'm not bothered at all. It's just that…I really wonder…sometimes…I just want to know how it feels to be with your family…with Tou-san…and Kaa-san…together…" She muttered softly. "That's all… I wasn't worried or sad… I just want to know…That's all…"

The two boys stared at their sister and blinked. Tsukuyomi huffed and scratched his head. "Really…you… You already know how it feels, don't you? You have us, don't you?"

Tsubame looked at him. "But…"

"Tou-san isn't here with us since the beginning, Tsubame. Even so, we're still family, aren't we? Kaa-san, Nii-san, you and me… we are staying together. We spend our time together and have meals together. With only that, we already know what it feels like to be a family, don't we?" Tsuna asked with an assuring smile. "So, you don't need to go and think about something like that. We have each other, and that's already good enough."

Tsubame was silent for a moment before she finally felt relief by her brothers. She smiled. "Arigatou, Nii-san, Nii-chan. Once again, I'm sorry for worrying you."

Tsukuyomi sighed. "Now, the, since you're not sulking anymore, let's hurry and go home. If we're late, Kaa-san might-UGH!" As he continued to walk, he unknowing bumped into an older kid on front of him.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" The boy shouted. There were four more boys with him. Tsukuomi rubbed his face and tsk-ed. "Yeah, yeah…sorry about that." Tsuna approached his brother. "Nii-san, are you okay? Uh…I'm really sorry." He also apologized.

One of the boys seemed to recognized the raven. "Hey, aren't you that rude arrogant kid from class 1-A? Tsu-gu.. Tsukuyomi, right?"

The raven became a bit alert and gently pushed Tsuna behind him. "Yeah. That's my name. Do I know you?" He didn't like the irritating tone that the boy was using with him.

"Hey! You're that kid who told the teacher about us the other day!" said another boy. Tsukuyomi then finally recognized their faces. "Ah! You're the seniors that bullied my friend that day!" He said.

"Yeah! Thanks to you, we were scolded by our teacher and our parents." Tsukuyomi grinned. "Oh really? I'm hornored to hear this, senpai. I hope you guys learned your lesson then?" He wanted to leave as soon as possible. He got the feeling that this wouldn't end well.

One boy stepped forward and grabbed the raven by his collar. "Nii-san!" The boy glared at the black-haired. "Yeah, right, we did, brat! Do you think we will? You should really learn to respect your elder and not to meddle with someone else's business."

Tsukuyomi smirked and grabbed the boy's hand that was holding and yanked it away before tripped the older boy with his feet. The boy winced as he fell to the ground. "Maybe senpai should learn that it's not good to bully the others first."

"Why you.."

"Nii-san, enough! Let's go!" Tsuna told his brother. He got a very bad feeling. "Do you think we will let you go easily? Think again, brat!" another boy shouted before lunging towards the raven. Tsukuyomi calmly stepped aside and tripped the boy's leg making him fell forward. "Don't you dare underestimate us!" growled another boy in irritation before he ran to the rave with his fist raised.

Before he could punch the raven, Tsukuyomi grabbed the boy's fist and twisted his arm and pushed him away. He then cracked his neck. "That's it? That's all you got? Maybe you should learn how to fight before fighting someone." He said bored.

"Gya!" "Tsubame!" He felt his heart stopped when he heard his siblings' voice. He immediately whirled around and saw them being held down by two boys. "Nii-san!"

Tsukuyomi's eyes widened. He had forgotten about them! The other boys also pulled themselves up from the ground before surrounding him. He looked around then back at his siblings. He began to sweat. "Hey, hey… I don't think this is fair, senpai."

The boys sneered. "There aren't any rule that says we can't use hostages. Now, if you don't want anything to happen to these two, you better stay still." He nodded; signaling his friends who smirked. The boy from the left suddenly punched Tsukuyomi's cheek making him fall to the ground. Tsuna and Tsubame were terrified by this. "Nii-san!" Tsuna struggled against his restraint, trying to break free. "Let go of me! Nii-san! Let go!"

"Oh shut up!" growled the boy that held him in annoyance before punching Tsuna. "Nii-chan!"

"Stop! Your business is with me, not them!" Tsukuyomi shouted and stood up. But fell to the ground again when he was kicked in the gut. Tsuna and Tsubame watched helplessly as their brother was being beaten by the older kids.

"Stop it, please! Nii-san!"

* * *

Back at the shrine, the black-haired mother looked up from what she was doing as she felt an omnivorous feeling blew past her. 'Just now… was it Tsuna and Tsubame's voice?'


	8. I'm just passing by?

**Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8, I'm just passing by?**

"Thank you for taking your time with us today, Vongola Primo. I'm very much honored."

"The same goes for me as well. It's my pleasure having your family as allies." Giotto responded as he shook hands with a mafia boss in front of him.

"By the way, do you have some free times after this? Why don't we go and have a drink together? There's something I wish to discuss with you." said the man with a smile. Giotto raised a brow.

"What is it that you want to discuss, sir?" He asked; he could already guessed what the topic was though. The man's smile became wider; weirding the blonde out. "I heard that you're still single, aren't you?"

'Here it comes!' Giotto cringed. "I happen to have a daughter and she is the same age as you. So, would you-?"

"Err… Would you look at the time?" Giotto quickly interrupted, quickly took out his pocket watch. "I apologize, but I should leave. I have more works to do. Now, please excuse me." He said with a polite bow before quickly left.

Giotto sighed in relief once he arrived in the car. "Phew…that was a close one…" He murmured, rubbing his temples. "Were you offered another marriage proposal again, Boss?" asked his driver from the passenger seat.

Giotto huffed and nodded. "Yeah…and this is the 49th time, too. Can't any of them get a clue that I can't take anyone I hardly know for a bride?" He grumbled. The driver chuckled. "That's how everything works, Boss. Well… but we all do hope you'll find someone soon."

The driver stopped for a while when he saw the traffic turned red. "The mansion did become lively with the ladies and the kids ever since your Guardians have moved in, but, we really wish to see you have someone special like them, too." He drove off once the traffic turned green. "Plus… you're getting older, too. At this rate, you won't have an heir to take over the family." The driver mentioned the last part with a pure smile.

"Hmm…someone special? Hey, wait! I'm not that old yet! I'm still in my 20s!" Giotto pouted. The driver laughed at his Boss's childish reaction.

Giotto only huffed at this and glanced outside of the car. 'Someone special… I wonder if I would really find that person.' He thought to himself. He always had this tingling feeling when he decided to return to Japan. Actually, he wasn't planning to come back. The family was doing very well in Italy. But then, he usually got the feeling that he had left something unfinished in Japan. He had no idea what it was. In the end, he trusted his Hyper intuition that told him to return and he did. Now that he had returned to Japan, what was he supposed to do?

'That's the problem… why exactly did I come back here?' He was purely clueless. He sighed. 'Maybe I should ask Knuckle to check my head a bit…'

While he continued to space out, he noticed a small group of kids ahead of the car. 'What are they doing?' He thought curiously, leaning forward a bit to see what was the kids up to. His driver seemed to notice this, too and slowed down the driving speed a bit. "Boss, may I pull over for a moment?" He asked. He knew what was going on.

"Sure. Why?" asked Giotto. But, as the view became more clearer, he understood why. 'It's a fight…' was what he first thought but when he recognize three of the kids among the group. "Stop immediately!" He ordered, feeling slightly panicking inside though he wasn't sure if those kids were whom he thought to be.

The driver was startled a bit but nodded and immediately pulled over beside the road. As soon as the car stopped, Giotto immediately got out and ran towards the small fight. "Nii-san! Nii-san! Please stop it!" As he got closer, he could hear pleading cries from the girl. He finally got to them.

"Hey! What's going on here? Stop it!" He shouted as he stopped before the kids. There, he could see that there were altogether eight kids; two of them were being held and one of them was being beaten up by the rest. The older kids noticed Giotto. "Shit. Guys, let's go!" One of them said and they all immediately fled the scene; leaving the three kids behind. Giotto sighed in relief.

"Nii-san!" The brunet and the blonde immediately ran up to their brother's side as soon as they were freed. "Nii-san, please hang in there. Don't die yet!" cried the girl. The boy in mentioned groaned slightly as he sat up and rubbed his face.

"Ow ow ow…." He winced. "Hey… Don't go killing me off yet. I'm not so weak that I would be killed by this kind of thing." He murmured. He winced again when his brother poked his arm. "Hey! It hurts! Don't poke my arm, idiot!"

Giotto huffed and knelt down beside the kids. "Are you guys alright?" He asked. The kids turned to look at him. "Oh yeah. Thanks for stepping in, Mr…. Wait! Aren't you that Giotto guy who called us dog-something?"

The blonde man sweat dropped. 'Deja vu…' He was correct. It was the triplets he met the other day at the shimon Estate. He sighed. "For the last time, it's doppelganger." He muttered. Couldn't he forget about this at all? "…anyway, we should take care of your injuries first." said Giotto, pointing at the bruises over the black-haired boy's arms, face and legs. The black-haired scoffed. "Don't bother…these are nothing." He said, trying to stand up. "Nii-san…" Both his siblings helped him stood up. Giotto stared at the brunet and blonde. They were slightly pale and looked extremely about their brother.

 ***Drip***

Giotto blinked. 'Drip?' The black-haired also blinked in confused when he felt blood dripping from his lip and down to the ground. He slowly raised his hand to rub his chin and stared at the red liquid on his hand. "Ah…it's blood."

His two siblings turned paler than ever and their eyes widened in horror when they saw this. "…N-Nii-san… Nii-san is bleeding…" Tsuna stuttered. Tsubame broke down. "Uwahhhh! Nii-san is bleeding! Nii-san is dying! Nii-san! Nii-san!" She sobbed, tears falling from her eyes.

Giotto was dumbfounded. "W-Wait! Wait! He's not dying. Stop crying! Hey!" But, he was ignored. 'How am I supposed to handle this?'

"Nii-sannnn!"

"Please, stop crying. I'm telling you he's still alive."

Tsukuyomi only watched the scene in front of him with blank face. "You guys are way too overreacting…" He didn't even know how to comfort his crying sister or his frozen brother.

* * *

 **At the Vongola Mansion**

Tsunayoshi and Tsubame sat quietly on the couch without uttering anything. A maid approached them with a tray and placed two cups of hot chocolate on the table in front of them. She then excused herself and left. Giotto was sitting on a seat across the two, fiddling his fingers nervously.

"Uh…Guys…I think you should drink it before it gets cold." He said with his usual grin, pointing at the drinks in front of them. The two didn't say anything but nodded and picked the cup up and sipping the hot drink. 'Wow…their movements are in sync…as expected of the twi-…no…triplets…' Giotto thought.

He watched as the two finished the whole cup and placed them back down on the table. "How was it? Is it too sweet?" He asked.

… No response…

He began to sweat. This was too awkward. He was clueless of what he should say to make the situation less awkward. Back at the street, with the help of his driver, he managed to calm the two down and brought them back the mansion, saying that he would take care of their brother's wound. During the short, yet somehow long car ride, Tsukuyomi was able to comfort his sister to stop crying, but he couldn't do anything to his pale looking brother. 'I felt really useless compared to him…' thought Giotto.

Once they arrived at the mansion, Giotto was relief to find that Knuckle was in at the time and asked for immediate treatment to the injured black-haired boy. Knuckle then urged Giotto and the two kids to wait in the other room assuring them that their brother would be fine. And here he was, sitting cluelessly with the two kids with a very awkward atmosphere surrounded them. Even his butler, Bob, had no idea of what he should do as he stood sternly behind his boss.

The silence was broken when the door opened as Knuckle entered the room…fortunately for Giotto. "Giotto, I'm done with healing his wound." Knuckle told his boss. Tsuna and Tsubame's heads perked up when their brother appeared beside Knuckle. His bruises were all gone his clothes were still dirty though.

"U…hey…Tsuna…Tsubame…" The black-haired scratched his neck nervously. "I'm already fine, okay. This man here he-ACK!" He stumbled and fell backward when his sister suddenly flung herself onto him; sniffling. "Yookatta, Nii-san. Youkatta." She sobbed in relief, hugging him tightly.

"W-Wait, Tsubame. I can't breathe."

Giotto huffed in relief when he saw the boy was alright and he was a bit surprised of how the blonde girl sudden relief reaction. Giotto stood up. "Thanks a lot, Knuckle. You really help out a lot."

Knuckle grinned. "No problem. It's part of my duty to the limit. Though, my flames are for healing people and helping them to recover to the limit." Giotto smiled in responded. Then, he spotted Tsuna walking over to his brother and stared at him before turning to his Sun Guardian.

"Mr. Priest, wasn't Nii-san bleeding?" He asked. He sounded cool and composed, not even stuttered. 'Weren't he shaking back there?'

Knuckle blinked. "Oh, that? Don't worry. His outside wounds are not too serious and he was bleeding because he seemed to have got one of his teeth knocked out." said the priest with a reassuring smile. Tsuna let out one long breath as if he had been holding it in for the entire time. "So that was it? Thank god…" He muttered, placing his hand on his chest. He then turned back to his two siblings.

"Tsubame, you should let Nii-san go. His face's starting to turn blue." He said, separating his crying sister from his brother. Tsubame let go of the black-haired and sniffled, before rubbing her tears away. Tsukuyomi sucked in as much breathe as he could once he was freed from his sister's grip. "Urgh…finally…. Thanks, Tsu-OWW!"

Everyone in the room was caught by surprise when Tsuna suddenly hit the black-haired on the head. "Owww! What the hell was that for you idiot?" Tsukuyomi growled, glaring at his brother while rubbing his head.

He gulped when he saw his brother's dark and angry expression. Giotto and Knuckle sweats dropped. Did the brunet just hit his bullied brother?

Tsuna bit his lower lip, and glared back at his brother with clenched fists. "That was for your stupidity, Baka Nii!" He murmured. "That time, why did you let them beat you up? You could have just fought back or let me help you."

"But, you were being held as hostages, idiot. And if you resist, they would have hurt you, too! And like hell I would let them do that!"

"So, what if they did hurt me? It's better than seeing you getting beaten up on your own!" The brunet argued back. "Stop making me so worried! What if someone doesn't pass by like today? They would have hurt you more than this." His voice began to shaken. Tears threatened to fall from his eyes, but he held them back.

Tsukuyomi started to panic again. "Whoa, hey hey. Calm down, idiot. Calm down first. I'm still alive, aren't I? I'm not weak enough to die from this kind of thing." He told his brother, ruffling his head.

"You always like to do things that make us worry, Baka Nii-san…" the brunet grumbled.

"Alright, alright. I'll be more careful next time so stop sulking. You too, Tsubame. I've already told you I'm fine. So stop sniffling and dry your tears." He said, glancing at his sister. Tsubame nodded bluntly without saying anything.

Giotto and Knuckle watched the three kids silently until the priest asked. "Say…Giotto…how did that boy get hurt like that? He even lost his teeth."

Giotto scratched his cheek. "Honestly, I have no idea either. I was on my way back here, I happened to pass by and saw the three of them being bullied by older kids so I stepped in."

"Oh…So, seeing how he's the only one injured, he must have tried to protect his siblings…" Knuckle nodded his head and grinned. "How kind and passionate of him to the limit! God bless him." He remarked.

Giotto chuckled. He almost forgot that the man was a priest. Then, he glanced back to see the triplets. The younger two seemed to have cool down thanks to their bother's comfort. Tsuna noticed Giotto staring at them. "Uh…Giotto-san, Thank you for saving us back there, and thank you for helping our brother." He said gratefully with a slight bow.

"Oh yeah. To think that we were saved by someone who called us doppelganger…but, thanks anyway." Tsukuyomi also said with a smirk. The blonde sighed. He still couldn't get over with it yet, could he? Knuckle was cdumbfounded by the boy's statement. Tsubame looked over to Giotto and muttered a small "Thank you."

Giotto smiled. "It's no big deal. I'm glad that nothing too critical happen to uhh…your name is Tsukuyomi, right?" He wasn't clearly sure who was who. Tsukuyomi nodded. "Yup. I'm Tsukuyomi. And this guy here is Tsuna and she's Tsubame, just in case you forgot."

The blonde laughed sheepishly. "Uh…yeah…Thanks. By the way, this man who healed you here is Knuckle. He's one of my family members."

Knuckle grinned. "Hello, there, kids. Nice to meet you. And, Tsukuyomi, I apologize that I couldn't help you recover your missing tooth."

The black-haired scoffed. "Ahh…never mind about that tooth. Thanks for healing me." He then glanced around in wonder. "Say…is this your house, Mr. Blondie?" He asked, earning a slap on the arm from Tsuna.

Giotto's eyes twitched. _Blondie? … this kid does have a completely different personality from his younger siblings._ "Yes. This is my house."

"Whoa! So ridiculously enormous. Are all Uncle Cozart's friends this rich?" The boy asking, glancing around in amazement.

Knuckle raised a brow. "Uncle Cozart?"

"Oh yeah. Their mother is a close friend of Cozart's wife so they're quite close." Giotto explained to his confused guardian. "Ohh…."

Tsuna approached Giotto with Tsubame beside him. "Umm… Giotto-san, don't you feel lonely living in this huge house by yourself?" He asked.

Giotto blinked and chuckled, before patting the boy's head. "Of course not. Why would I feel lonely? I have my friends and their family living together with me." He jerked a thumb at Knuckle. "He is also one of them."

"Ahh…" Tsuna stared at the priest who grinned at him with a thoughtful look. 'Is it just me or does he look like someone I have just met?' He thought. 'That bandage across his nose….who was it again?'

At the same time, though a bit different, Knuckle was also having the same thought as he carefully observed the brunet, the blonde girl beside him and the black-haired boy. 'Hmm…these children…their face do resemble to someone I know, but who is it again?'

As Tsukuyomi continued to look around the room, his eyes landed on the nearby wall clock. "Ahhh! It's already this late? I think we should go home now!" He suddenly blurted out. His two siblings also looked at the clock and were concerned when they saw what time it was.

"Wait, kids. What's the rush? Why don't you have dinner before you go?" said Giotto; confused by how the triplets suddenly looked hurried. "Dinner should be ready in next 30 mins. I think I'd better go prepared in the kitchen. May I excuse myself, Master?" came from Bob who was silent for the entire time. Giotto nodded and the butler left the room to help the others prepared the meal.

"Anyway, guys, you can relax first. I can send you home after dinner."

Tsukuyomi shook his head. "No, we can't!"

"Why?"

"Our Mother might get worried about us if we don't get back home in time and we don't want her to be worry." Tsuna replied. Tsukuyomi sighed. "And if she finds out what happens today…damn… I can imagine how she would react."

Tsubame nodded in agreement. "Kaa-san… easily gets worried about us. And we don't want to worry her." She said in a low soft tone.

Giotto was about to ask something, but he immediately stopped himself when he recalled what he was told about the triplets. He was relief. The question almost slipped out of his lip.

"What about your father? Does he easily get worried like your mother, too?" asked Knuckle. Giotto jolted. 'Ack…KNUCKLE!'

Tsukuyomi and Tsubame tensed. The blonde girl tightly clenched on Tsuna's shirt. The brunet remained clam but he was also very sensitive to this. Knuckle blinked in confusion. Did he just say something he shouldn't?

Tsuna patted his sister's head gently before he turned to Knuckle. "Tou-san is not here with us anymore." He replied. "But, we still have our Kaa-san."

Knuckle's mouth gaped and he turned white. 'WAHHHH! I really did ask something touchy to the limit! I'm such a block-head to the limit!' He shouted in his mind.

Giotto knew exactly what the Sun Guardian was thinking and let out a sigh. 'Well…it's not like he knew about these three before so I can't blame for being thoughtless.'

"Ah…Kids…"

Before anything more could be said, the door suddenly opened, making them jumped slightly. Elena peeked inside the room. "Giotto, me and the girls' are going out for groceries. Is there anything… Oh my... Triplets?"

Upon hearing the familiar voice, the three turned their head to look at a certain blonde lady with blue eyes. "Aunt Elena?"

Elena stepped inside the room. "Whatever are you guys doing here?" She asked. "Ah, Elena, you know them as well?" asked Giotto.

Elena huffed. "Sure, I do. So does Larvina and Kaoru. Our kids are in the same school after all." She said. "I passed by Bob just now and he told me that you have guests. I didn't think that it would be you three." She approached the triplets. "Tsuna, Tsubame, Tsukuyomi, it's been a while." She smiled.

Tsuna grinned nervously. "Good evening, Aunt Elena. And the last we saw you was a week ago. It's not that long yet."

Elena giggled. "I know. But, ever since I started living here, it felt like a long time since I've last seen you. How's your mother doing? I haven't had a chance to chat with her lately."

"Thank you for your concern, Aunt Elena. Kaa-san's doing fine." Tsuna replied with a smile. Going unnoticed by him, Tsukuyomi's face darkened slightly with guilt at this.

"Is that so?" Elena stood up. "Say, how did you guys get acquaintance with Giotto anyway? It's not every day that you would just follow a stranger around."

"Ah… I happened to meet them when I paid a visit to Cozart and his family." Giotto replied.

"Oh… so that's why…" Elena smiled. "Then, I supposed you've met with his wife as well. So… what do you think of her? First impression of your best friend's wife?"

The man nodded. "Indeed I did…first impression…" He gulped. "…beautiful yet scary…" He shivered slightly remembering his first encounter with the carnivorous lady of Shimon. She was very frightening. "All the time while we were talking…I felt like she's trying to hold herself back from slaughtering me…She's very scary." Tsukuyomi was snickering to himself. He remembered how Giotto reacted when Ellen threw her sword at him and Cozart. Tsuna hit him with his elbow. "Nii-san, that's not very nice."

Elena giggled slightly. "I know right? But, despite her scary and composed appearance, she can be quite a Tsundere sometime. That kinda makes her cute, doesn't she?" Giotto blinked. Tsudere?

Knuckle was left out of the conversation. He quietly listened to what the two was talking since he didn't know what he should ask. Giotto noticed his friend's confusion and grinned apologetically. "Sorry, Knuckle, I'll explain later." Knuckle smiled and nodded.

"Mother, are we going yet?" asked Chrome as she peeked her head from outside the room with Kyoko. Tsubame immediately recognized her two classmates. "Chrome? Kyoko?"

The two girls' eyes brightened up and they immediately ran up to her. "Tsubame, what are doing here? Are you here to visit us? How did you know where we live?" Excitedly, Kyoko started asking her bunch of questions at the same time making the blonde girl unable to keep up with them.

"Kyoko, calm down. Tsubame can't answer you if you ask that much." Chrome stepped in and stopped the orangenette. Kyoko grinned. "Ah...opps. Sorry. I'm just a bit happy." Elena giggled. She knew how happy it felt when someone you've just known comes to visit you even if it's just a coincidence. Giotto needed not to ask how the girls knew each other. 'Well… Larvina did say all of the kids go to the same school…'

"Ah! Tsuna and Tsukuyomi are also here! You guys are here to visit us, too?" asked Kyoko when she noticed Tsubame's brothers. Tsuna smiled. "Unfortunately, we're not although we would like to visit you guys sometimes."

"Then…how did you three end up here?" asked Chrome.

"Ah…" Tsukuyomi scratched his head. "We sorta ran into some troubles on our way home and got saved by this blondie here." He pointed at Giotto who sighed. 'Really…stop calling me blondie… Isn't your sister a blonde just like me?'

"Then… he brought us here to take care of…." Tsukuyomi stopped for a while and stared at Kyoko and Chrome. "Ahh! Could it be that you guys live here? And the house that you were talking about is this?" He shouted out in realization. Chrome and Kyoko blinked and nodded.

"Yeah. We all live here together. Me, Kyoko, big brother, Kyoya and the others are also here." Chrome replied. Tsuna and Tsubame's eyes sparkled. "Wow…. You guys live in this giant mansion? Cool. It's even bigger than I thought it would." Tsuna remarked. Tsubame also nodded in agreement.

Tsukuyomi was looking around curiously. _This is my house._ He straightened up remembering what Giotto said. Slowly, he turned to look at the man who blinked in confusion and grinned nervously in return. "Hey…don't tell me that the master of the house is this guy?" He asked the girls.

Chrome nodded. "Yeah. Uncle Giotto was the one who let us levae here together with him."

Tsukuyomi gulped. "…and…he is the boss of your dad and Kyoya's dad?" He added. Chrome tilted her head in confusion. "Yes, he is. He is the boss of the family."

The black-haired's jaw dropped as he stared at the blonde boss in disbelief. 'No way… this guy? This timid, nervous, weak-looking blondie? A Boss of a Mafia family? For real?' He gawked.

Giotto blinked in confusion when he noticed Tsukuyomi was giving him a look of disbelief. He scratched his cheek nervously. 'Now what did I do again…?'

Tsuna shook his head and sighed; knowing that his elder sibling was thinking something rude again. "Nii-san, whatever you're having in your mind, stop it right away." He whacked his brother's head.

Tsukuyomi yelped again and glared menacingly at the brunet. "Would you quit doing that? How many times does this makes for today?"

"No idea…"

Kyoko giggled. "Both of them look very lively, don't they?"

Chrome nodded. "Very lively indeed…I'm glad I know who they are or else I would think that Tsuna is the eldest instead…"

"I know, right? Tsubame must really have fun because of those two. I wonder if they're always like this at home. Ne, Tsubame… what do you think?"

The blonde girl tilted her head to the side. "At home...they also argue like this…but not too much…The only time that they would argue is while we're studying…"

'So they do argue even at home…'

Giotto and Knuckle deadpanned as they watched the two siblings argued. 'They're quite amusing to watch somehow…' Elena smiled. Those two would never change, would they?

"I think I should give a call to their mother to let her know where they are." She said walking to the corner of the room, to where the phone was. Giotto nodded. "Please do, Elena."

The blonde then walked over to the two boys. "Now, you two, it's not nice to fight in front of the ladies."

Tsukuyomi scowled. "Who cares about a bunch of girls?"

"Nii-san…" Tsuna sighed. "I'm sorry about my brother, Giotto-san. He didn't actually mean what he said." The blonde nodded. "No, it's okay. Don't mind."

Just then, a loud weeping cry was heard when Lampo entered the room. "Hey, Giotto, have you seen Knuckle around here?" asked the green-haired while carrying a crying kid in his arms. "Ah, Lampo, if it's Knuckle you're looking, he's here."

Knuckle approached the young man. "What's the matter to the limit?"

Lapmo sighed. "This idiot here was running through the hall way and ended up tripping. He wouldn't stop crying." He held out Lambo's knees to show a hole in his cow suit and a bruise on his knees. Knuckle chuckled. "Oh, it's only a small bruise. It's nothing serious to the limit." He activated his sun flames and placed his hand around the boy's bruise. "There, there, Lambo. Don't cry."

"BWAHHHHH! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! LAMBO-SAN HURTS! UWAHHHH!" The boy bawled. "…What a pain…" Lampo grumbled. Menawhile, the triplets were watching carefully and the thought that they had at that time was 'What's with the cow suit?'

After the bruise was healed, Knuckle stepped back but Lambo still didn't stop whining. "…Guys…a little help here?"

"BWAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Tsukuyomi covered his ears. "Urgh! Annoying as hell! Could somebody tell him to stop or I'll make him!"

"Nii-san, don't lash out on every single thing that happens around you." Tsuna told his brother. Tsukuyomi scoffed. "The, you shut him up!" The brunet sighed and approached the green-haired man. "Would you mind kneeling down, Mister?" He asked politely.

Lampo blinked, staring at the brown-haired boy. He blinked again to make sure he wasn't seeing things. 'Mini-Giotto?' Oh well, right now, he has to calm the crying kid first. He knelt down at Tsuna's eyes level, and watched how the boy was going to stop the kid.

Tsuna stared at the crying kid and gently patted his head. "There there, stop crying." He said gently. "My name is Tsuna. What's yours?" He asked.

Lambo stopped weeping and turned to look at Tsuna. Somehow, the calming and soothing aura that the brunet emitted was able to catch his attention and cool him down. He stopped crying, but still sniffing. "L-Lambo…"

"Lambo, that's a nice name. Now, would you stop crying? If you cry more, you would make everyone around you worry." said Tsuna.

Tsukuyomi scowled. 'Worry? More like irritating!'

Lambo sniffed. "B-But… It's hurt! Lambo-san's in pain!" Tsuna had a thoughtful look on his face before he grinned. "In that case…" He put his hand on the boy's bruise. "Pain, pain, go away!" He said, swooshing his hand to the side. Lambo looked at him; dumbfounded.

"My mother told me that whenever I'm hurt, if I put my hand on the injury and cast 'Pain, Pain, Go away!', you won't feel any pain anymore." He fished out a candy from his pocket. "..and after having a candy of course."

Lambo received the candy from the brunet and grinned. "Lambo-san's all good now!" He exclaimed, hopping in Lampo's arms. "Lambo-san's all good now! Woopie!" He exclaimed cheerfully.

Everyone in the room chuckled in amusement. Tsukuyomi rolled his eyes. "Of course, he's all good. He got a candy after all…" He grumbled, crossing his arms. Tsuna chuckled slightly when he saw his borther pouted. "Here's one for you, too, Nii-san." cooed Tsuna waving a candy in front of his brother.

The black-haired flushed red. "I wasn't asking for it, Baka! But, whatever…" He murmured, snatching the candy away.

Kyoko smiled. "Aww… how sweet."

"Each for you ladies, too." said Tsuna, offering candies to Kyoko, Chrome and Tsubame. "Thanks, Tsuna."

"Nii-chan, do you always carry these around with you?" asked Tsubame, staring at the candy she got from her brother. Tsuna nodded and took out more candies. "Just in case I bump into someone who needs it." He said, shooting a glance at his brother.

"Hey, who the hell needs this? Don't look at me!" growled Tsukuyomi in annoyance. The other children snickered at his expression.

Giotto watched in amazement. 'Tsuna sure knows what to do to cheer everyone up…' At the time, Lampo was still in his own thoughts. '…not one Mini Giotto but three? Plus, there's also a girl?'

"Giotto."

"Ah, Elena, how was it? Is everything okay?" asked Giotto when he saw the blonde lady approached him. Elena shook her head. "Not good. No one's picking up the line. Maybe she's not in the house." She rubbed her temple. "She's probably outside waiting for the triplets."

Giotto raised a brow. "Is she really that worried about her kids? Sounds overprotective…"

Elena sighed. "You don't understand what she'd been through, Giotto." She murmured. "Anyway, can you send them home? I have to prepare dinner so I'm not available…"

"Ah…but I don't know where…"

"Nahh…It's not that far. We only live near the shrine kilometers away from here." said Tsukuyomi. Wait, when did he get here?

"Then, that settles it! Giotto, I'm counting on you." said Elena excitedly. "Oh wait. I made some cookies with the girls. Maybe I should share some with her, too. Wait over here, guys. I'll be right back." With that, she quickly left the room.

"Wait! I didn't say I will send them home!" Giotto tried to cut in, but Elena was already gone. Tsukuyomi smirked. "I did remember a particular Blondie said that he will send us home after dinner. We're just gonna skip the dinner so we appreciate your help." Giotto face palmed. Now that he realized it, he did say that…

* * *

And now…here he was, standing in front of the big shrine entrance with a box of home-made cookies in his hands. He heard leaves rustling and shivered slightly. He knew that they lived near the shrine but he didn't think the area could be so…It's so far away from the town!

"Are you guys sure that it's here?" he asked the triplets. Tsuna nodded. "Yes, it is. Our house is near the Namimori shrine."

"So…does that means that we have to walk inside the gates?"

Tsukuyomi rolled his eyes annoyingly. "If you don't wanna see us off till we got there, it's your choice. We can go on our own from here."

Tsubame pointed at the gate. "Our house is just through that…not very far from here."

Giotto shook his head. "No, I will go with you guys. Elena asked me to explain everything to your mother to lessen her worries."

The black-haired shrugged and walked towards the shrine gates. "If you insist…follow us." He told the man who reluctantly tailed after the three children.

On their way, Tsukuyomi stole a glance at the blonde man. "Ummm…hey, Blondie…About today… Thanks for saving us…We really do appreciate it…"

Giotto blinked. He's saying that now…and again? "Oh… It really is not a big deal. I already told you."

"No… Thank you for healing my injuries… That's what I really am grateful for…" Tsukuyomi said more clearly. Tsuna and Tsubame lowered their head. They knew what their brother meant.

Giotto, on the other, was dumbfounded. "Well… I don't get what you mean…but, you're welcome." He said with a smile. He looked around. 'Now that it gets dark, everything looks creepy around here…' He then noticed another gate. This time, there's a large building, which he assumed to be the shrine, behind it, and under the gate stood a young lady, waiting. 'Who's that?'

"Kaa-san!" The triplets exclaimed once they spotted her and quickly ran to her. The lady looked up immediately once she heard her children's voice.

"Tsukuyomi! Tsuna! Tsubame!" She called out their names and bent down. The kids ran into her opening arms. "Kaa-san." They murmured in unison. "Tadaima."

"Okaerinasai." She said, hugging them. Although she didn't ask or say anything more than that, Giotto could sense the concerns and reliefs inside her voice. She must have been very worried. 'So…that's their mother…' He thought with a smile, though he couldn't clearly see her face.

"Gomenasai, Kaa-san…" He heard the three kids murmured, snuggling against their mother. They sounded guilty. But, why? Why would they feel bad? It wasn't their fault that they were bullied.

Their mother patted their back gently and ruffled their heads. "Don't apologize. I'm glad that you're unharmed. As long as you guys are safe…" She said softly and gently.

Giotto walked up to them and stood in front of them. The mother noticed him and stood up, letting go of her children. "Ah! Kaa-san, this is Giotto-san. He was the one who brought us back here."

"Oh…is that so?" He finally saw her face when she looked up at him. Honestly, she was a bit different from what he had expected. She has pale skin and black long hair that reached over her knees. And her crystal blue eyes… Tsubame must have gotten it from her. She also looked really…similar to the triplets, especially her expression.

"Giotto-san, was it? I'm very grateful to you for helping my children. Thank you very much." She said in an appreciated tone.

Her voice sounded very gentle and soothing. It was very pleasant. He suddenly felt nervous and shaky. He began to tremble slightly. "Ah! Ah…Good evening, Ma'am…er Miss… No…wait…errr…" He stuttered with anxiety. 'What is wrong with me?'

The triplet sweats dropped. 'What is wrong with him all of a sudden?'

Giotto took a breath and regained his composure. "I'm Giotto Vongola. Nice to meet you." He said politely.

The lady giggled slightly. "You're quite funny, Vongola-san."

"Ahh…please call me Giotto. I'm not used to being called Vongola yet." said the Vongola boss with a sheepish grin. "Umm.. You're…"

"Oh dear…where are my manners?" The black-haired woman smiled politely at him. "I'm Tsukina, Sawada Tsukina. Nice to meet you, Giotto-san."


	9. Meeting Her Again?

**Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9, Meeting her again?**

"What? You guys came to our mansion yesterday evening?" Hayato exclaimed one afternoon. The three siblings jumped when the silver-haired suddenly leaned towards them.

"Back off, idiot! You're too close!" Tsukuyomi growled and pushed the boy away. Takeshi chuckled. "You guys don't need to shout like that. You're scaring Tsubame." He said, pointing at the blonde who sat frozen beside Tsuna.

The black-haired sighed and ruffled her hair. "Sorry about that, Tsubame." The blonde shook her head. "It's okay. I was only startled."

Hayato sat back down. "Anyway, what were you guys doing at that time? How did you end up like that?" Tsuna sighed. "Well… How do I explain this?" He muttered, fiddling his fingers.

Enma sighed while listening to the conversation. 'It probably started with Tsukuyomi and ended with Tsukuyomi…again…' He murmured to himself. As if hearing what he was thinking at the time, said boy turned to glare menacingly at him making him gulped in awe. He held up his hands in defense and shook his head. 'I'm not saying it out loud! I'm not saying it out loud!'

He was relief when the black-haired boy huffed and looked away. 'I'm saved…'

"Kufufufu… May I take a guess about the cause?" Mukuro said with a chuckle while shooting Tsukuyomi a smirk. The boy's eyes twitched in annoyance. Bianchi giggled in amusement and decided to join in. "Fufu… Undoubtedly, the trouble started with…"

The two of them have the same toothy grin on their face making the eldest triplet felt more irritating. He gave them a warning glare. The two didn't flinch and grinned sadistically back at him. Before anyone could say anything further, Takeshi was the one to steal the show from Mukuro and Bianchi.

"Tsukuyomi, don't tell me you getting into trouble was the reason why you guys ended up at the mansion." He said insensitively.

'Ah…he said it…' thought Enma, Tsuna and Tsubame at the same time as they sweats dropped. Takeshi sure was carefree. Tsukuyomi's head dropped and sulked, not looking anywhere while hugging his knees. He didn't like it when someone brought up anything he did that affected his siblings. He was sometimes weak against it.

Takeshi blinked innocently. "Ah… I was just guessing cuz' I notice your teeth?" He said in attempt to comfort the raven…maybe?

Mukuro huffed. "Aww…Takeshi…not fair…" He murmured, sounding disappointed. "Yeah. You stole the fun from us." Bianchi pouted. "Party-pooper…"

Takeshi was dumbfounded. "Ah…I'm sorry?" Hayato sighed and turned to the sulking raven. "But anyway, from your reaction, it seems like he's right. You got into a fight and got Tsuna and Tsubame into your mess, didn't you?"

"Stop repeating it…" Tsukuyomi murmured quietly. "You idiot! Learn to control your temper already!" Hayato lectured. The black-haired frowned and scowled. "Says the person who is as short temper as me…" He murmured under his breathe. "…at least I don't go around throwing dynamites at random people whenever I snapped.

Hayato popped a vein. "What was that, you jerk?"

"Heh…I wonder what?" replied Tsukuyomi with a smirk. Tsuna sighed. "Alright, you two. Enough. It's already happened and we can't change whatever happened to us." He turned to his brother. "Also, Nii-san, you don't need to feel guilty about this because neither Kaa-san, nor Tsubame nor I blame you, alright?" He said tapping his brother's forehead.

Tsukuyomi blinked and nodded. Surely… either of them didn't feel like remembering how many times he had got into troubles. Most of the time, Tsuna was there to sort things out but yesterday, Tsubame was also there. It was the first time that he had got her into his trouble. 'I have to be careful in the future…' He mentally made a note to himself.

Tsuna huffed and crossed his arms. 'Be more and more careful than that!' He doubled the note for his brother. The raven groaned. 'Now he's keeping extra eyes on me than usual!'

Bianchi and Mukuro chuckled at the silent communication between the two. "Oh my, getting lectured by your brother again, Tsukuyomi?" Mukuro sneered. "You should have learned your lesson already."

A vein twitched down the black-haired's head at this. "Oi…"

"Yeah. You are the **Nii-san** , aren't you?" Bianchi joined in. Really, the two of them loved to tease the raven and tormented him with it.

"You two! You better shut up or I'll make you!" growled Tsukuyomi in annoyance. Mukuro chucked. "Oh really, you will? I won't if I were you. Right, Bianchi?" He shot the pink-haired a look.

I6Bianchi smirked. "Yeah, me, too. If I bully someone again, I might get scolded by my brother." Hayato shivered slightly at this. He didn't even dare to look at her in the eyes sometimes so how the hell was he supposed to scold her? Just the way she was staring sadistically made him turned blue.

"Cut it out already!" The raven wailed in annoyance. He shrieked when Ryohei suddenly grabbed him by his shoulders and turned him to face the silver-haired boy. "THEY'RE RIGHT TO THE EXTREME, TSUKUYOMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" Ryohei shouted from the top of his lungs, making the raven cringed.

"SIBLINGS ARE THE MOST PRECIOUS TREASURES IN YOUR LIFE! YOU SHOULD TRY TO PROTECT WITH ALL YOU MIGHT TO THE EXTREME! JUST LIKE ME! I ALWAYS TRY MY BEST TO KEEP KYOKO SAFE TO THE EXTREMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Everyone covered their ears with their hands. Poor Tsukuyomi could feel his eardrums exploded. "PROTECT THEM TO THE EXTEME! EXTREMELY TO THE EXTREMELYYYYYY!"

"SHUT UP, LAWN-HEAD! WE CAN'T EVEN MAKE OUT WHAT YOU'RE FREAKING SAYING!" Hayato growled furiously once Ryohei had finally stopped.

"Maa maa, Hayato, Ryohei was just trying to make a point." said Takeshi with a grin.

"I don't think anything he says make a point though…" Mukuro murmured. "I second that…" said Enma in agreement.

Kyoko sighed. "Again…Onii-chan…" She murmured. "Sorry about him again." She grinned sheepishly. Tsuna smiled and shooked his head.

"We don't mind at all. We've pretty much got used to it." He remarked. Chrome and Tsubame nodded in agreement. Takeshi grinned and cross his arms behind his head. "He's full of energy as always. I'm amused."

The orangenette was relief. "Thank god… I thought you would get annoyed by his behavior."

"Not at all. Stop apologizing already, Kyoko." said Tsuna. "Even since Ryohei and you came, things have become more livelier around us than before. We should thank your brother for this."

"Tsuna's right, Kyoko." Chrome stepped beside Kyoko and placed her hand on the oragne-haired's shoulder. "Ryohei might be loud, but he is kind and nice. I'm glad that you two joined us." She said softly, her face flushed pink. She hasn't got used to being around the girl yet.

"Everyone here is as energetic and weird as Ryohei, but you don't have anything to be worried. Nii-san is louder than Ryohei when he's arguing." Tsubame added. Tsuna sweat dropped. 'Is that supposed to make her feel better?'

Kyoko smiled gratefully. "Arigatou, Chrome, Tsubame. You guys are really kind. I'm so glad." Tsuna huffed, his cheek reddened slightly at her bright smile although he had no idea why.

"WHY YOU STUPID LAWN-HEAD!" His head immediately wiped back to his brother cracking his knuckles and Hayato lighting up his dynamites. The two of them have finally snapped. "NII-SAN! HAYATO!" Tsuna yelled worryingly and immediately dash to stop the hot-headed duo from causing damages to anything and anyone.

Kyoko giggled as she watched Tsuna trying to separate Hayato and Tsukuyomi from her brother. 'How lively.' She thought. Chrome said nothing since her brother wasn't in that one. Tsubame only sighed before turning her head to look at a certain skylark sleeping soundly beside the water tank.

'Kyoya sure is a heavy sleeper…. taking a nap despite the ruckus…' She thought. Little did she know, the mentioned skylark was trying his best to ignore the noisy friends since he wasn't in the mood to lash out at them.

* * *

" **I'm Tsukina, Sawada Tsukina. Nice to meet you, Giotto-san." The black-haired introduced with a polite smile.**

 **Giotto stood frozen without being able to move. His face flushed bright red either from nervousness or from being stunned by the black-haired beauty before him.** **The latter** **reason seemed more obvious since he was taken aback by her beauty.**

 **She looked very different, compared to other women he had met. No… She was like Alaude's wife; Kaoru, simple yet fair and beautiful...stunning… The woman before him; dressed in the traditional attire of a miko which consisted of a red hakama, a white haori with a pale red sash-like belt, gave out a pure, pleasant and majestic vibes. Her long black hair… her uncompetitive, beautiful yet mysterious blue crystal blue eyes… Giotto couldn't find the correct word to define the goddess before him. Wait, goddess?**

 **Tsukina was worried when Giotto didn't respond. "Urr… Giotto-san?" She asked. "Are you not feeling well?"**

 **The blonde finally snapped back to reality and took a deep breath. "I'm alright, Sawada-san." He replied, smiling and calmly; his heart was still beating uncontrollably. The triplets were staring strangely at him especially Tsukuyomi. He could feel that the raven was giving him an intense and threatening look.**

 **Giotto gulped and glanced back at their mother. "Umm…this." He held out the box that Elena had given to him. "Elena asked me to give this to you. They're home-made cookies." He blurted out. He then mentally face-palmed when Tsukina gave him a questioning look. 'Urgh, you idiot! Isn't there a better way to tell her? This definitely looks suspicious to her!' He was a stranger and she obviously wouldn't know that Elena was the one making these.**

" **Ahh…ano…They're…souvenirs?" Giotto was speechless and panic. What was he supposed to tell her? He sneaked a glance at her and was surprised when he saw her smiling. "Oh, is that so?" She walked up to him and reached out her hands to accept the box.**

 **He flinched when he felt her hands accidentally touched his. "Thank you for the cookies, Giotto-san and to Elena, too." She told him. "I apologize, Giotto-san. I don't have anything to give in return right now."**

 **Giotto shook his head. "No, it's ok. You weren't expecting any guests so, no worries. I'm just glad that you believe my words." He told her with a sheepish smile. "Honestly, I was afraid you would think I'm lying since I'm a complete stranger."**

 **Tsukina giggled. "You might be a stranger but you're a good person. That's why I trust you." She glanced back at her children. "Also, you went all the way to bring my children back, too. There's no reason why I wouldn't trust a gentleman like you. Arigatou, Giotto-san."**

 **The blonde's heart skipped a beat when she smiled at him again. His face turned redder even than her haori. He thanked the darkness for hiding his blushing face from her. "Giotto-san, would you like to join us for dinner tonight? It's getting quite late after all. And I want to thank you for today as well." said the black-haired.**

" **No, thank you!" Giotto refused almost immediately. "I-I have more work to finish so I better go back. " He bowed. "I'll be on my way. It was nice meeting you, Sawada-san." With that, he immediately turned his heels and rushed away from her without saying anything more.**

* * *

Giotto sighed and sank his face deeper into his arms on his desk. 'I'm the worst…' He thought; disappointed in himself. Why the hell did he refuse her? It wasn't very nice of him to refuse an invitation to a simple dinner. He shouldn't even refuse it in the first place! He was known for being a gentleman but that night, he wasn't in the right mind. He couldn't even think straight when she stood before him, smiling. Giotto had never felt this bad for refusing something in his entire life.

But… it was the first time that he had this strange tingling feeling. It was his first time that someone has made his heart pounding like that time. That woman… the black-haired beauty who looked like an angel that had come down from heaven… she was breathtaking. Her beauties were beyond words. Just by recalling her appearance made his heart raced rapidly. What was wrong with him?

"Oi, Giotto!" growled a threatened voice. Giotto raised his head up and saw his right hand man and Cloud guardian standing in front of his desk, both looking very impatient. He blinked.

"What is it, G? Do you need something?"

G popped a vein and glared menacingly at his confused looking boss. "What is it you say…? You damn idiot! Just what the hell are you daydreaming about, you no-good Boss? Do you want me to shoot you?"

Alaude looked equally irritated. "The Head Butler said that you wanted to see me and the red-haired herbivore so we came here."

"And while we were standing here waiting for you to say something, you have the urge to space out, Vongola Primo. Do you have a death wish?" asked G, laughing evilly.

Giotto jolted up from his seat and held up his hands in defense. "Wait, Wait, G, Alaude! I'm sorry for spacing out. I called you two here because I have a mission for you two." He whimpered shakenly.

Alaude frowned and tapped his feet. "Then, state your business. I have other things to deal with CEDEF." He muttered in a low growling voice. G nodded in agreement. "I'm also busy as well. Hurry up and speak or else I will leave."

Giotto sweated. 'These guys are really hot-headed.' Honestly, the two of them might be his guardians but sometimes, he still couldn't really handle their temper yet. He was scared and frightened by it. But, at least he got used to it now. He picked up two files from the documents on his desk and passed it to G and Alaude.

"This mission is a request from the locals from Kansai region." He started explaining the two about their mission. The two Guardians cooled down a bit and listened to the blonde quietly. After explaining what has to be done, Giotto glanced at the two men who were going through their mission files.

"So…do you guys think you'll be able to handle it?" He asked the two. It was their first mission ever since they've moved to Japan so he was uncertain whether they felt like continue working or not. G and Alaude looked at each other before turning to look at the blonde.

"When do we leave?" asked G. Giotto blinked, a bit dumbfounded, but replied seriously. "If possible, now."

Immediately, the two men stood up. "Understood." Alaude left to pack his things after that but G remained inside the study room. "What is it, G?"

The red-haired man gave him a mixing stare of curiosity and worries. Crossing his arms over his chest, he asked with a raised brow. "Oi Giotto, are you feeling alright? You've been spacing out more than usual." stated the red-haired. "If you're not feeling well, why don't you have Knuckle check up on you?"

Giotto blinked and grinned sheepishly. "Ah…you were worrying about me? Thanks, G. But, I'm alright." His friend scowled. "You'd better be. It'll be a problem for us and the family if something were to happen to you." He turned around, placing his hand in his pocket. "I'll be going. I don't want Alaude nagging at me for being slow." He grumbled before he left the room.

Giotto sighed and ruffled his hair. He should get himself together. He was making everyone worried about him. But…he was still bothered by the strange feeling in his chest when he recalled the face of the shrine maiden who he had just met. He clutched his chest tightly. He couldn't even keep his calm composure when he remembered her silhouette. 'What is this feeling?'

"Giotto I brought your coffee." The blonde was startled when Larvina suddenly entered the room carrying a tray in her hands. "I hope I didn't scare you for entering without knocking first." said the women.

Giotto regained himself and shook his head. "Of course not, Larvina. I'll eventually get used to it." Damn…he was so lost in his thoughts that his Hyper Intuition couldn't sense Larvina coming. He needed to snap out of this. "By the way, aren't you going to see G off? I thought Bob was the one bringing me the coffee."

Larvina smiled and walked over to the blonde's desk and set the hot drink down in front of him. "G and Alaude left just now. Kaoru and I sent them off." She said. "But, before he left, G complained about his certain boss who is daydreaming instead of doing his job properly."

Giotto sweat dropped. 'G…'

Larvina placed the tray down and leaned against the desk. "So, boss, is there anything bothering you?" She asked. "I've noticed that you were a little off since you came back last night. What happened?"

Giotto looked uncertain. Should he be talking with her about this kind of matter? It could only be his imagination after all. As if knowing what the man was thinking, Larvina grinned and asked. "Giotto, Elena told me that you sent Tsukuyomi and siblings back to their home. Did you perhaps… meet their mother by any chance?"

The blonde flustered slightly at the mention of the black-haired woman. "H-how did you know?"

Larvina sighed and crossed her arms. "Well, it is expected, isn't it? If you go to someone's house, you'll undoubtedly meet with the owner of the house." She stated. "So… you meet Tsu-chan, didn't you? Did something happen at that time? You didn't do anything rude, did you?"

The blonde flinched at the word 'rude' and 'Tsu-chan'? Who's that? Oh right. Her name's Tsukina. Larvina smirked seeing his flustered expression. "Giotto, don't tell me that you've already fallen for her?" She teased.

"No way! No way! No way! No way! No way! It couldn't be! We've just met and she has children, too. To fall in love with someone who's already married; that's too rude of me and Alaude will throw me into jail if I did so."

Giotto's face flushed beet red as he immediately bolted up from his seat and stuttered in embarrassment. Larvina giggled. 'Oh my…He's flustering. He's flustering.' She has already expected this.

"Relax, Giotto. I'm just kidding. Jeeze. No need to take this seriously." She told him, making him sighed in relief. He almost stumbled backwards while protesting. "So, wanna tell me what happened? I might be able to help." She asked. Giotto stared at the woman in front of him. Should he or should he not tell her? Well…maybe he could…since she seemed to know more about the triplet's mother, too.

"Well…actually…the thing is that…" Giotto started talking while fiddling his thumb and fidgeting uncomfortably in his seat. "…yesterday…Elena asked me to pass some home-made cookies to Sawada-san…and when I did, she took them without hesitation…I was kinda glad too… But… but…like when she invited me for dinner, I refused her without giving a second thought…"

Larvina watched the blonde's childish behavior in amusement as he continued explaining to her. "…Sawada-san…she must have thought I'm weird now… because even when we were merely telling each other's names, I couldn't think straight…my head was a mess…I don't know why… I feel like an idiot…"

Larvina deadpanned. 'What is this? A child confessing his guilt to his mother?' She thought. But, her eyes' softened slightly in empathizing when she noticed the blonde's expression at the time. It was gentle…desperate…It was kind and heartwarming… It was… 'CUTE!' She squealed.

"So, you feel bad and being rude for refusing her? Is that what troubles you so much?" She asked. Giotto pouted slightly and nodded. She sighed and shook her head. "You know… I don't think Tsukina even mind such thing…knowing her…"

Giotto shook his head. "But, I do. Even if she doesn't I do. I… I want to make it up to her." Why? Why was his heart throbbing? Why did he long to see her again? Larvina huffed finally decided that she would help him out. "Okay. If you really feel bad and want to make it up to her, you can accompany her today."

Giotto blinked in confusion. "Accompany her?"

The woman smiled and nodded. "Meaning that why don't you spend the day with her and see if she needs any help? You could also use this as an excuse if you feel like seeing her and…you might get to know more about her." She winked teasingly making Giotto blushed.

"I'm telling you that's not it! I don't have that kind of intention!"

* * *

Outside of the study room, Elena was standing beside the door while listening to the conversation between the two with interests and excitements. In other words, she's eavesdropping. Her lips formed into a smile when she heard what was going on with Giotto. "Way to go, Larvina!" She squealed slightly, throwing her hands into the air in joy.

"Just what do you think you ladies are doing?"

She jumped slightly when she felt footsteps behind her. Gulping nervously, she turned around and came face to face with her female skylark ….friend. "Hey there, Kaoru." _Uh oh…Oh my…_

* * *

 **That Afternoon**

In front of Namimori School's Gates, Cozart tapped his feet playfully; leaning his back against his car. There were other parents who were chattering among one another especially the mothers as they glanced at the red haired with dreamy eyes. Cozart noticed this so he smiled politely at them, making them squealed.

'If Ellen was here, she would definitely be jealous.' He chuckled; thinking of his wife.

" ** _Like hell I would get jealous, You Jerk!"_** He winced when he imagined how she would react. One thing for sure, she would not hesitate to throw her fist at him. She would definitely get jealous but he knew there was no way she would show it directly. 'Such a dishonest reaction…'

He heard the sound of two vehicles driving towards him so he turned his head, expecting to see who he was familiar with. The sound of the school bell ringing was heard right after the two cars pulled over beside his. He grinned. 'Just in time as always.'

"Hey there, Larvina…and Giotto." He waved cheerfully at the two persons who came out from each car.

Giotto was the first one to notice his friend. "Ah…Yo, Cozart." He beamed while walking over to his friend. "Nice seeing you there."

"Same here." Cozart responded by playfully throwing his arm around the blonde. "Fancy seeing you here, Giotto. Are you here to pick up the kids?" He asked, though he already knew the answer.

Giotto grinned. "Yeah…sort of…" He scratched his cheek nervously.

Larvina approached the two buddies. "Good afternoon, Cozart." She greeted.

"Good afternoon, Larvina." Cozart returned the greeting with a nod. He then gave her a wink which she responded with a smile. Giotto stared back and forth and the two in confusion. Were they planning something?

"Papa!" He broke out from his thought when he heard a childish voice and turned to the side to see mini Cozart running towards the three. Some of the other kids were also coming out from the school building by that time. Cozart grinned and opened his arms for his son and lifted the boy up like he always did. "Welcome back, Enma. Look who's here with Papa today."

Enma took a notice of the blonde man, standing beside his father. "Umm…Good afternoon, Uncle Giotto." He said, sounding nervous.

Giotto chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. "Hello, Enma." He was a bit amused by how nervous the boy was even though they had met once already.

"Aunt Larvina, Good afternoon." Giotto flinched when he heard a familiar polite voice and turned to see Tsuna, smiling at the silver-haired woman. Takeshi and Hayato were also there. 'So…these three are in the same class…'

Tsuna felt like he was being stared and turned to look at who the culprit was. "Ah…Giotto-san, Uncle Cozart, Good afternoon."

Cozart smiled. "Quite a young gentleman, isn't he?" He whisepered to Giotto who nodded in return. "Good afternoon, Tsuna. Aren't your siblings with you?" asked the red-haired.

Tsuna shook his head. "Not yet. But, I think they might be here soon."

"Is that so?"

Giotto yelped when Larvina smacked him with her elbow. He gave her a questioning look. She responded by motioning towards the brunet boy. The blonde looked a bit unsure about this. It was too sudden. Tsuna blinked while staring at Giotto as if waiting for the man to say something.

Cozart sighed at his friend's hesitation and gave the man a pat on the shoulder; making the blonde look at him. "Go ahead, Giotto. It's not like he's gonna kill you." he said.

Giotto was dumbfounded. Wait… Cozart knew what he was thinking? How could that be? Did he also have Hyper intuition? No way… It couldn't be…"Umm… Giotto-san?"

The blonde turned to look at Tsunayoshi and saw the boy still waiting for him. "Uh…Tsunayoshi…like…today…can I…Uh no…" He stammered. "I'll tak-…no…" Waitttttt! His words didn't even make sense. Have more courage, idiot!

Larvina sighed and shook her head. She couldn't bear to watch this anymore. "Tsunayoshi, are you guys gonna walk home again?" She asked.

Tsuna turned his attention to the woman who spoke up and nodded. "Hai. We are walking back." Tsukuyomi replied in his brother's stead from behind. Tsuna jumped when his brother suddenly popped out from his back.

"Nii-san, don't scare me like that. Tsubame's here also?"

Not only Tsukuyomi and Tsubame, but the remaining kids; Chrome, Mukuro, Ryohei, Kyoko, and Bianchi have also arrived…except fro Kyoya. Tsukuyomi ignored his brother's complain and turned to the blonde man.

"Hey, Blondie. What are you doing here?" He asked; sounding a bit displeased about the fact that Giotto was present. The Vongola Don shuddered slightly at the menacing look that the boy was giving. It seemed like he was hated for some reason.

"Uh…I…uh…" Now, he's having a harder time than before! Mukuro and Bianchi smirked as they watched the scene before him. 'The race's out loose again.'

Tsuna sighed and placed his hand on the black-haired's shoulder. "Nii-san, cut it out. You're scaring Giotto-san." He told his brother. "If you don't, I'll tell Kaa-san that you're being rude again."

The menacing look disappeared almost immediately right after Tsuna said this. Tsukuyomi clicked his tongue in annoyance and turned away from the man. 'There he goes again…Sulking Nii-san…' Tsubame thought to herself while watching her two brothers.

Tsuna huffed and smiled apologetically at Giotto. "I apologize about my brother. He's in a bad mood." He told the man. "Giotto-san, were you going to say something to us?"

Giotto was amazed by how Tsuna dealt with his brother…again. _Say something? Oh right!_ He cleared his throat. "Like, I always heard from Larvina that you guys usually walk home. So…I was thinking if you would like me to give you three a life today?" He smiled nervously, scratching the back of his head.

Tsukuyomi's menacing glare returned when he heard this. "Yeah right. Like hell we'll-" His mouth was muffled by his brother; shushing the rest of his sentence.

"About that, Giotto-san, we're already used to this so we can go back on our own. We appreciate your help yesterday." Tsuna declined with a smile. Tsukuyomi struggled against his brother's grip but he couldn't break free for some reason.

Giotto had already seen that one coming. "I know that…but I want to make sure something like that won't ever happen again. You can't say that those boys won't attack you three again like they did." He said worryingly. "Only for today…just only today… Let me make sure that you three got home safely. I don't want you to feel guilty for something you haven't done in front of your mother." What was he saying? He didn't even know their mother that well.

Hearing his reason, the triplets stood in silence and were staring intensely at him. Even Tsukuyomi stopped struggling. Now, that made him uncomfortable. He felt like he was being monitored by them. It seemed like they were trying to figure out what he was thinking. 'Well…I think it's normal…'

Cozart and Larvina turned to look at each other before went back to glance at the blonde. Larvina wasn't sure what was going on but Cozart seemed to know it...No…He had no clue as well… Tsuna let go of his brother and turned to ask his siblings.

"Well, what do you guys wanna do?"

Tsukuyomi scowled in annoyance and fixed his bag pack. "Do whatever you want." He said. He then glanced at the blonde girl. "What do you think, Tsubame?"

Tsubame stared at Giotto for a few moments before she averted her gaze to the ground. "…He's not a bad person…" She murmured quietly.

Tsuna nodded and smiled at the blonde who looked confused. "Giotto-san, is that all your reason?" He asked.

Cozart's eyes narrowed slightly at this. He felt pressures from the young brunet all of a sudden. He smirked in amusement. 'How scary…'

Giotto gulped. What's with that question? What the hell was that supposed to mean? Well… it's not wrong though… He has more… He wanted to apologize to her. That was his other reason, but he couldn't say it. Then again, he had a feeling that he shouldn't lie.

"No…" He replied bluntly. "There's one more."

The young brunet looked satisfied by what he had answered. "Ok. We accept your offer." He said; not asking anything more. "Again, thank you, Giotto-san."

What was that just now? For a moment, it's like Tsuna's eyes turned orange and were glowing menacingly….or so he thought. Giotto's intuition was calm at that time, but strangely, he felt like he had just been dominated by another stronger intuition. He somehow disliked this fact. 'But…why?' He didn't know. He had no answers. He shook his head. For the time being…

"Great. Well then, let's waste no time. Hop in." He told them, pointing to the car behind him. The three nodded and turned to the rest of their friends.

"We'll be leaving first, guys." said Tsunayoshi.

"Take care on your way home, you three." waved Takeshi cheerfully.

"See you tomorrow, Tsuna." beamed Hayato.

"Make sure you won't get lectured by…kufufufu.. your dear brother."

"Don't get them into trouble, **Onii-san**." Bianchi doubled Mukuro's remark. Tsukuyomi felt veins twitching down his head at the two's evil smirk. Oh, how he hated these two when they double-ganged on him!

"Hai hai. I'll be sure to remember this, you dumbasses." He replied through gritted teeth. _I'll definitely get you for this!_

"Tsubame, next time, come and visit us again." said Kyoko. "Tsuna and Tsukuyomi, too."

Tsubame's face flushed and she nodded. Tsuna smiled. "Sure. Thanks. See you tomorrow." After that, the three got into the back seat of the car. 'Not very talkative in front of people as always…' Cozart thought glancing at Tsubame.

"Cozart, next week, I'm arranging a meeting with the allied Family. It'd be great if you can join." Giott informed his friend. Cozart blinked and grinned.

"Sure, why not? Send me the details later. Say hi to Tsukina for me, Giotto." He said with a wave. The blonde nodded. "Sure." He then got into the driver's seat and started the engine. "Larvina, I might be back late so you guys can go ahead and have dinner without me."

Larvina smiled. "Roger, sir." She replied playfully. "Have fun. And…make sure not to repeat the same thing you don't wanna feel distressed again." She told him. He gulped and nodded nervously. "Yes, Ma'am." With that, he drove away along with the triplets.

Once the car was out of sight, Larvina glanced at the remaining children. "Since Kyoya isn't here yet, why don't you all wait in the car first?" She told them. They nodded and get inside the car.

"Kufufufu. You shouldn't bother waiting , Aunt Larvina. We can just leave the skylark behind." said Mukuro, grinning evilly, before he got in. Chrome sighed. "Big Brother…" When will they ever get along?

The silver-haired lady chuckled. "Now now, Mukuro. Patience. He'll be here in a while." She said. Mukuro chuckled and closed the car door. Larvina huffed and shook her head. "These two…"

Cozart laughed in amusement at this. "Like father, like son, aren't they?" He commented. She turned to him and giggled.

"Well…that's how they are. By the way, where's your darling? Don't tell me…on mission?" She asked, crossing her arms.

The red head waved his hand. "No. No. She's at home; preparing dinner. She just got back last week, there's no way I'm gonna send her off immediately."

She sighed. "You're right. You shouldn't. By the way, thanks, Cozart…for helping out."

"No worries. I am not opposed to this either…although…Ellen might…" He murmured worryingly. "Anyway, let's just wait and see how things will turn out." He said.

Larvina lowered her head slightly, feeling uneasy. "I hope we are not repeating the same mistake…"

Now, it was Cozart's turn to worry. They were not doing anything dangerous, were they? No. No. It wasn't the time to back away. Giotto's already gone. They couldn't take back what they were going. He turned to look at the silver-haired. "Larvina, I myself am not sure what will happen. If it turns out okay, then it's okay. But, if it's not, I'll be the one to stop them." He told her sternly. "For now..."

She nodded, understanding what he meant. Neither of them could see the future like the Boss of Giglio Nero, so all they could do was to wait. "Honestly, we only got the confident to do this because Aria is also on our side…if not, I'd be too scared…"

"Me, too, Larvina…Me, too…" Just then, he spotted a certain boy walking out from the building. "Seems like Alaude's kid is here." He told her. Larvina turned to greet at Kyoya and told him to get inside the car. He didn't say anything in response but only a nod. He then turned to give Cozart an acknowledge look before getting into the car.

"Alright, Cozart. We're leaving. Enjoy your dinner." said Larvina with a wink. After that, she got inside the car and left. Cozart watched as everyone was starting to leave for their homes. He turned to look at his son whom he was still carrying.

"Well, let us go back, too, Enma. Mama should be expecting our return." He said with a toothy grin. He got no reply from the boy. "Enma?"

The red head was still and silent. His skin was slightly pale and he looked frightened for some reason. Cozart became worried when he saw this. "Enma!" He tried calling his son again. Was he not feeling well? Should they drop by a clinic before they went back? Now, he's panicking.

"Papa…" He was relieved when he finally heard his son's voice.

"Enma, are you okay? Don't scare me like that."

The boy gripped onto his shirt and looked at him. His eyes became a bit teary. "Papa…who was that?" asked Enma, confusing him.

"Huh?"

Enma's voice was shuddering. "The one that was talking with Uncle Giotto… Who was it?"

Cozart's eyes widened. Wait. "Ah…What are you talking about, dummy?" He laughed half-heartedly. "It's Tsuna. You forgot what he looks like or something?" He brushed it off.

Enma shook his head. "No!" He whimpered. "It wasn't Tsuna. It's wasn't him!" He sniffed. "Tsuna's not scary like that. Tsuna is not like that!"

The red head man was stunned by his son's words. What did he mean by that? "Enma, don't worry… It's Tsuna. That boy is Tsuna. If he wasn't Tsuna, either Tsukuyomi or Tsubame would know immediately." He said, trying to comfort his son.

Enma tried to hold in his tears. "Are you sure?" He asked.

Cozart grinned and nodded. "Yes, Enma. I assure you…It was no one else. Maybe…you feel tired from school." He suggested. "Alright! Let's go home. Mama's cooking might help cheering your up."

The red haired boy looked at his father with unsure eyes, but he wiped his eyes and nodded. "Hai."

* * *

 **And, that's it for this chapter! In the next chapter, Giotto will be spending some times with the triplets and their mother and I'm really itching to write it! *sparkles* Ok, then. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and see you soon in the next chapter.**


	10. Accompanying her?

**I really wanted to upload this chapter along with my other two stories. But I didn't have the time to finish them all at the same time. TvT But oh well, I update what I finished first... here's chapter 10. Enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Khr.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10, Accompanying Her**

Giotto gulped nervously as he stirred the steering wheels; eyes focusing on the road. Tsukuyomi and his siblings sat quietly at the back seat without uttering any word ever since they've left the school. The silence was too awkward for Giotto to handle.

Before he could think of anything to chat to break the silence, he heard a soft voice from Tsubame.

'Heh…how surprising of her to start talking…' But, her whispers were so soft that he could barely hear what she was saying.

"Nii-chan, karada…daijoubu desu ga?" He glanced at the back mirror to see who she was talking to and it was Tsuna.

"Daijoubu. Goshinbai naku." replied Tsuna in a quiet soothing voice. He heard Tsukuyomi let out an annoyed scowl; probably directed at the brunet's assuring statement. A nervous chuckle was the response from the brunet to his brother's scowl.

They're being secretive was what Giotto thought. The three of them were hiding something. 'I wonder if they also keep this from their mother…'

"Kaa-san?" He blinked when he heard the eldest boy's voice rung out. "Stop the car!" Giotto unknowingly hit the brake when Tsukuyomi told him to and the car was pulled over beside the road without causing any harmful impact.

Once the car stopped, Tsukuyomi immediately got out along with his siblings. Giotto watched in confusion as the three made their way to a nearby store from the market district until he saw who they were trying to get to.

Standing in front of the store was a woman in traditional shrine maiden attire with the sheet of the white haori tying up by white strings and loosely tied long black hair.

"Kaa-san, Tadaima!" the woman turned around and was greeted by her children's cheerful greet.

"Ara, Okaerinasai, minna-san." She greeted back by patting each their head.

Giotto smiled. It was Tsukina alright. He got out of the car and decided to approach the family.

"Oh. Konichiwa, Giotto-san." Tsukina beamed politely with a smile when she noticed his presence. "How is it that you're with the kids?"

"Konichiwa, Sawada-san." Giotto retuned with a sheepish grin. "Umm…well…you see…"

"We bumped into each other at school so he offered us a lift." Tsukuyomi briefly finished the sentence for him. "He was very irritation so we let him did he want."

"Nii-san…mind your manners…" muttered Tsuna as he shook his head. Giotto laughed nervously.

"Well, pretty much that's what happened…"

"Oh, I see. Thank you, Giotto-san. We've troubled you again." Tsukina said a smile of apology and gratitude.

"No, no. It's ok, Sawada-san." Giotto said, raising his hand. "This is no big deal at all." He started to feel flustered and nervous again but it wasn't as bad as before…fortunately.

"By the way, Sawada-san, were you shopping for dinner?" He asked, deciding to change the topic.

Tsukina nodded. "Yes. I didn't realize that I was short on ingredients for dinner. Silly me." She said with a nervous smile.

Giotto chuckled. She was such a sweet woman. Just then, he realized why he was here in the first place. "So, have you got everything you need?"

Tsukina nodded. "Hai. I was just about to head back."

"Then would you like me to give you a ride?" He asked.

"Eh?"

Giotto's face flushed slightly at her confused expression. Maybe, he pushed the pace too fast? "Ah…I was actually heading to the shrine, too…so…"

He glanced nervously at her while rubbing the back of his neck. Tsukina looked a bit unsure. "Giotto-san, I appreciate your offer, but, I think we've troubled you enough…" She said with a sheepish smile.

The blonde had already seen this coming but he didn't feel like backing down from what his first mission was. "It's okay, Sawada-san. I insist." He told her. "I did mention I was going to the same way as well…besides…"

He slightly leaned close to her. "Think of it as an apology for my rudeness last night." He said softly in a slightly inaudible tone.

Tsukina blinked while staring at him and smiled. "In that case, I shall gratefully accept your offer." She said, almost making him jump in joy. He didn't though. "But, only if you'd join us for dinner, Giotto-san."

Giotto stared blankly at her before he let out a chuckle. "How cunning, Sawada-san." He said, making her giggled.

Meanwhile, Tsukuyomi was trying to break free from Tsuna who was holding him back from slaughtering the Mafia Don for the sudden closure to his mother. Lucky for you, Giotto.

* * *

 **At the Shimon Estate**

"Welcome back, Master Cozart, Young Master Enma." Tanaka greeted the two red-haireds as they walked into the front door.

"We're back, ji-chan." Enma responded cheerfully, handing his backpack to the old man who offered to take it.

"How was your day, Young Master?" the old man asked.

Enma stiffened slightly a bit as he started trembling. The butler raised a brow at this. Has something bad happened? He turned to the other red-haired, shooting him a questioning look.

Cozart responded with a frown and a shook of his head. He then playfully ruffled his son's head. "It's been a tiring day for you, isn't it?" He grinned. "Well then, let's get to the kitchen to see what Mama is up to. She's the one cooking our dinner tonight."

Enma pouted when his father did this. "Papa, please stop treating me like a child!"

"But, you are one." Cozart let out a chuckle at his son's complaint. Tanaka sighed as he stared at the two of them.

"Lady Ellen has almost finished the preparation. Try not to bother when she's cooking." He told them sternly. "Especially you, Master Cozart!" He said the last one while directing a warning glare at the Shimon Boss who shuddered slightly. "You do not wish for more extra paperwork, do you?"

"Y-Yes, Sir!" replied the Boss while quivering in fear.

"I'm going to see Mama!" said Enma excitedly as he ran off to the direction of the kitchen, leaving his father and Tanaka behind. Cozart sighed and began walking off to the same direction as well, along with the butler.

"Master Cozart, may I ask if you are up to something risky or not?" Tanaka questioned suspiciously while one their way.

Cozart sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "No, I'm not. What makes you think that?" He lied smoothly. The man looked unconvinced however, he decided not to go any deeper.

"Whatever you are doing, Master, please do not act reckless. You can never know what will happen with one wrong move."

The two arrived in front of the kitchen door. "I'll keep that in mind, Tanaka." said the red-haired before he entered the kitchen. There, he spotted his wife, kneeling in front of his son while feeding the boy some snacks.

He mentally squealed when he saw her wearing an apron over her black turtle-neck sleeveless shirt. 'Oh my god! She's so cute!'

Ellen took a notice of the red-haired man and stood up. "Welcome back, Cozart." She patted her son. "Enma, why don't you get her hands washed and go to the dining room first. Your father and I will join you in a moment." She told the boy.

Enma nodded. "See you at the dinner, Papa, Mama." He beamed to his parents before he left with Tanaka.

When Enma was out of the sight, Ellen took off her apron and placed it on the counter before telling the maids to take the freshly cooked meals to the dining room. She then walked over to the basin to wash her hands. "Did anything happen at school, Shimon?" she asked her husband who remained in the room.

The man was surprised by the question. "What's with the sudden question?" He walked over and stood beside her.

Ellen huffed. "Your flames' waves are not stable. They're not calm or jumpy like usual." She told him. "You should know better than anyone that we can sense each other's flames, Shimon Cozart."

Cozart smirked in amusement at this. "Hehh…So you were worried about me, my dear?" he asked, sneakily placing his arms around her waist.

The woman's face flushed pink in both embarrassment and annoyance, but she tried to control her temper.

"No, I'm not. If you were to lose your composure as the Shimon Boss because of an unimportant matter, it'll be a problem for me and Tanaka." She turned off the tap and wiped her hands with a nearby handkerchief.

"I'm concerned because I don't want to deal with anything troublesome." She turned to look at him; not bothering by how close their faces was. "So, Cozart, do you have anything you should tell me?"

His hold on her waist slightly tightened. He averted his gaze from her to something else. Should he tell her what Lavina and the others were up to? Should he tell her about Giotto's encounter with Tsukina? Or Enma's strange behavior? He wasn't sure how she would react to it. On the other hand, he didn't want to lie to her of all people. He gulped.

"Actually, Giotto told me that there will be a meeting between the Vongola Family and the allied families next week." He tried changing the topic. "And… I was wondering if I should ask you to attend the meeting with me or not…"

Ellen raised a brow. "That's what has been bothering you? It's obvious that I should go with you. It's my duty."

Cozart frowned when he heard this. He wasn't really pleased with her answer. Ellen stiffened slightly when the red-haired slowly leaned down to rest his head on her shoulder. "Did you have to put it that way?" He murmured. "Even after we're married and have Enma, you're still giving me cold shoulders like before…"

Ellen huffed. This guy really was handful for her. Being unable to punch or beat him when he's like this, she only patted his back. "Even though I'm married to you, given my current position in this family, I don't hav- "

"You're my wife, not my servant. You don't have to do everything I say out of sense of duty. Your life is your choice…" He interrupted her, tightening his hold on her.

"Just ignore what the other famiglia says… They can't decide for you, Ellen…Everyone in this family accepts you for who you are, not what you are!"

He almost raised his voice at her when he said this. Nonetheless, he didn't like it when he was reminded of how the Mafia society belittled his wife for her title within the family. How dare them!

She shivered when she felt him nuzzled her shoulder. "S-Shimon…" God, was she this sensitive before? "Nnn… Stop it, Cozart!" She grunted, trembling slightly against his touch. Cozart didn't stop and he pushed down the fabric covering her neck before breathing against her exposed skin.

"Hyaaa!" She shrieked when he sucked onto her throat without any warning. Her face flushed red as she clutched her eyes shut, her hands tightly gripping onto his back. 'Cozart! Cozart!' She growled in her mind, begging him to stop. However, no words but a gasp escaped her lips when he kissed her bare skin. _Somebody, please stop this idiot!_

 ***DONG! DONG! DONG!***

The two couple when the sound of the clock in the room rung up, interrupting Cozart before he could do anything further. Using this chance, Ellen quickly shoved the Shimon boss away in embarrassment before using her hand to quickly cover the bruise on her neck which resulted from his action.

The red-haired stumbled backward slightly before he glanced at the black-haired woman in confusion. It was only when he saw her beet red face and red eyes glaring at him that he realized that he got carried away.

"Ah… Ellen? Wait! I wasn't trying to do anything! I was just thinking about something and accidentally let myself lose!" Cozart stuttered while raising his hands in defense.

Ellen panted slightly at the lack of oxygen while trying to calm her madly pounding her heart. All the heats were rushing to her head making her felt dizzy. Even her ears turned red when she remembered how he…

… _This jerk…he dares messing with me…and here I am, being a bit worried for him…_

An enormous killing intense was coming from the black-haired woman. "Yikes…" _I'm so dead…_ He turned pale at this. Maybe he really had gone too far? Her ways of dealing with embarrassment were quite…brutal.

Ellen continued to emit the menacing aura. Cozart trembled when he felt her blood thirsty eyes glaring menacingly at him. Immediately, he slowly backed away from her in fear. "E-Ellen…" He whimpered. "W-We shouldn't fight right now. It's almost time for dinner. E-Enma's waiting for us."

She smiled back at him. "Yes, you're right. It is time for dinner." She cracked her knuckles as she inched closer to him. "That's why we should hurry and finish this, shouldn't we, Shimon Cozart?"

Cozart knew he was doomed the moment he witnessed her igniting black flames from her ring. 'Well… at least I was able to direct her attention to somewhere else…'

* * *

At the dining room, Enma was sitting on his chair, waiting for his parents when he heard a loud explosion and a scream coming from the kitchen. "Ji-chan, what was that sound?"

Tanaka sighed and shook his head. _There goes the kitchen…_ "Your mother's probably cooking another meal with the help of your Father, Young Master." He meant literally. "Pay no mind to the small matter."

Enma blinked and tilted his head innocently. "I didn't know that Papa can cook..."

* * *

 **With Giotto and Sawadas**

As the car entered the shrine area, Giotto drove over to the place where he had park his car the night before. Once the car was pulled over and stopped, the kids were the first to get off and offered to take her grocery bags for her.

The blonde watched quietly as he three siblings were given some of the grocery bags from their mother then ran off to the gate, heading to their home.

"You have such thoughtful kids, Sawada-san." said Giotto with a smile.

"They'd probably got it from their father." Tsukina replied and for a moment, her face looked sad as her eyes softened. The blonde felt like he had said something he shouldn't again. The woman however retained her calm expression and turned to him.

"Well then, let us get going." She said, walking off to the gate with the blonde following close behind her.

As he got near the second gate, his heart started to pump faster and his entire body stiffed. His eyes widened and his face turned pale. 'What is this?' His heart was racing too fast and he felt very exhausted all of a sudden. It was the same sensation that he felt last night, but this time, it felt more worse.

He thought the reason why his heart was pounding rapidly was because of his nervousness. But that didn't seem to be the case. His intuition was screaming 'DANGER!' He felt all his strength was starting to leave him. It's like he was pinned down Cozart's gravity force and having all his strength sucked away at the same time.

"Giotto-san?" Tsukina called out worryingly while standing before him. "Are you okay?" She asked. "Are you not feeling well?" she sounded concerned about him.

Giotto raised his head to look at her. "Yeah… I'm alright…" He managed to reply without chocking on his breathes. His head started to spin and his vision slowly became blurry. Not good. At this rate, he'd pass out.

"Giotto-san…" The blonde glanced at her when she called him again and saw her reaching her hand out to him; making him confused. Was she telling him to take her hand? If he did so, would this go away? His intuition was telling him 'YES!' He wasn't sure but at the same time, he had no time to lose. This was silent situation of life and death for him.

Trusting his intuition's judgement, he reached out his hand to grab onto hers. As soon as his hand touched hers, all the force that was pressuring him disappeared. He sucked in as much air as he could; freed from whatever was torturing him.

He placed his hand on his knee for supports while the other one still holding onto Tsukina's. He glanced at her and noticed her let out a sigh of relief. 'Geh…I must have made her worried…' He thought. Now, he felt bad and pathetic… He tightened his grip on her hand getting her attention.

"Sawada-san, I'm already fine." He said with an assuring smile. "You don't need to worry."

She stared at him silently for a moment before smiling slightly. "Thank goodness…" She murmured. He was expecting her to let go of him but she didn't. Instead, she held his hand tightly and continued to move forward.

Giotto said nothing as he continued to walk after the black-haired; letting himself being dragged along.

"I'm sorry, Giotto-san." He blinked in confusion when he heard her apologizing. She sounded regret and guilty. He wasn't sure why she apologized.

"It's okay, Sawada-san. It's no big deal." He grinned sheepishly. But, there was no response from her.

When they reached the top, he could see the stone paths and the entire compound of the shrine. She finally let go of his hand.

"Giotto-san, do you feel better now?" asked Tsukina worryingly.

The blonde nodded. "Yes. I feel much better now." He scratched his cheek nervously. "Lately, I've been dealing with lots of paperwork. I'm just probably tired." He told her.

"If you say so…Our house is just through those trees. You can take a rest when we got there." She then walked off leading him through the forest. 'Another forest…so, it's not in the compound?'

He guessed wrong. The separated pathway led them through the trees and to a clearing where a large, one-storied, Japanese house was built. House? It's almost as huge as a small manor!

While he was left with amazement, he unknowingly followed after Tsukina as she led him to the front door. She opened the slide-front door for him. "After you, Giotto-san." She said.

Giotto grinned. "Thank you. Sorry for intruding." Once he was inside, Tsukina closed the door behind her and took off her sandals before stepping inside.

"Kaa-san!" Her three children came running from the corridor and stood in from of her. "We placed all the groceries in the kitchen." said Tsuna. "Is there anything we can help with?"

The woman thought for a while. "Hmm…Tsubame, why don't you help me in the kitchen?" She told her daughter. Giotto could see the girl's eyes lit up in excitement as she eagerly nodded.

"Tsukuyomi and Tsuna, can I leave the garden to you two?" continued Tsukina as she turned to her sons.

"Yes, Kaa-san. You can count on us. Let's go, Nii-san." said Tsuna as he dragged his brother with him; heading to the garden to do their chores.

"Tsubame, before you help me, can you take Giotto-san to the living room?" Tsukina asked the blonde girl who remained beside her.

Giotto blinked thoughtfully at this; remembering what he was told by Lavina. "Ah, actually, Sawada-san...do you mind if I help out with the house chores?"

Tsukina and Tsubame turned to look at him in surprise, though it was a bit unnoticeable. The black-haired looked uncertain rather than surprise. "But, Giotto-san, you're our guest tonight. And just now, you weren't feeling very wel-"

"I'm already okay, Sawada-san." Giotto knew it was rude but he cut her off anyway, even not with bad intentions of course. "I would rather do something than sitting around not doing anything. That would be boring. Plus…." His voice lowered a bit when he said this. "…I still haven't apologized yet…"

He wasn't intending to let her hear this, but he assumed that she did since she smiled gently at him; her eyes softened. "Quite a persistent man, aren't you Giotto-san?"

She giggled slightly when she saw his shoulders' slumped down slightly. "I'm just kidding." He was relief by this. "Very well, Giotto-san. Then, may I ask you to help Tsukuyomi and Tsuna in the garden?" She asked.

His eyes lit up with enthusiastic as he beamed. "Yes." Tsubame kept her gaze on the man without a word.

"Tsubame, would you mind showing Giotto-san where the garden is? And Giotto-san, you can ask my sons what is to be done." Tsukina told the two blondes. "I'll let you know when dinner's ready."

Giotto grinned and nodded. "Understood."

"Well, I'll excuse myself then. Thank you for offering your help." said Tsukina before she walked through the hallway and turned to the left corner; disappearing from the sight.

Tsubame slipped on her shoes and made her way out of the house with Giotto following behind. The girl led him to the left side of the house with Giotto glancing at his surroundings.

"So, is this the only way to the garden?" He asked the blonde girl.

"No." She answered briefly. "There's another route from inside of the house by the living room."

"Heh…then, wouldn't it be easier to go from that route? We were inside of the house just now." Giotto asked in wonder.

She didn't reply to him. He assumed that she might just have realized about this? She must have been too nervous around him to think since he's still a stranger.

"I would have done that, but we didn't have any scandals or slippers prepared for you if you were to walk to the garden directly from there." answered Tsubame frankly in one sentence. "You wouldn't want to walk around the ground dirtying your socks, would you?" She asked blankly, turning to glance at the man for a moment.

Giotto sweat dropped. "…I suppose not…"

Her answer had already cut out the rest of the conversation and he had no idea what he should say to her or build up a conversation. He had assumed that Tsukuyomi was the one who's the most difficult to deal with among the three. It seemed like Tsubame's the one who really was more difficult. The three siblings, they might have different personalities, but…'They're equally blunt without showing mercy…'

He sighed in distress, ruffling his hair. Could he really get along with them?

"Nii-san! I'm telling you to go easy with that plant!"

Giotto heard a certain brunet's voice from a corner several steps away from where he and Tsubame were. When they've walked over to the source of the voice, they could see Tsukuyomi kneeling near a small flowering plant with a small shovel in his hand. Tsuna was standing beside the boy with a broom.

"Quite complaining! It's not like it has sensation. It's a freaking plant!" Tsukuyomi growled irritatingly at his brother.

Tsuna sighed. "Do I have to go over this again? Even though they're plants, they're the kinds that needed to be handled gently!" He told his brother.

"Urghhhh! If you're gonna complain, why don't you come and do this instead!" his brother retorted back.

"You're the one who said you want to do this, baka-Nii!"

"Don't call your brother idiot, Baka! What's your problem?"

"Says you! What is your problem?"

The Vongola Don sweat dropped. 'They're arguing again…these two…'

"Nii-san. Nii-chan."

Before the argument could go on any further, Tsubame approached her brothers, catching their attention. "Oh hey, Tsubame. What are you…and that blondie doing here?" asked Tsukuyomi as his eyes trailed from his sister to the blonde man behind her.

"He's going to help you two with this so you can finish quickly before dinner." Tsubame replied. "Kaa-san asked me to bring him here. She says he'll be in your cares."

Tsukuyomi said nothing and glanced at Giotto suspiciously making the man flinched. "Understood. It'll be a great help. Thanks, Tsubame." said Tsuna to his sister.

The girl nodded. "I'll call you guys when dinner's ready. I'm gonna go help Kaa-san." With that, she walked away from the three; leaving a fidgeting Giotto behind with her two brothers.

Giotto turned to look at the two; silently asking what he's supposed to do. Tsukuyomi stared blankly at him for a moment before continuing what he was doing; ignoring the man. The blonde sweat dropped. Was he hated by the boy? The answer was seemingly yes.

Tsuna walked up to Giotto and handed him the broom he was holding. "Giotto-san, can you clean the leaves around there?" he asked; pointing at the dry leaves at the side of the veranda of the house.

Giotto nodded. "Okay. Leaven it to me!" He beamed and started sweeping the leaves; getting to work. As he swept the leaves, he glanced around the garden in wonder. 'A garden?' He stared at the wide scene before him. 'This ain't a garden! It's a freaking open field!' His jaws almost dropped when he stared the sight before him.

The house was surrounded by trees. And, behind the large house was supposedly a **garden** , which actually was a large field landscaped to fit with the nature. Giotto could see small grassy hills at the openings with trees planted on them. There were small plants near where he and the two boys were standing and near the house was a small pond. Behind the hills were mountains, ones he had seen when he was at the stairway.

"Err…these areas…they all belong to the shrine?" asked Giotto; stuttering as he stared at the landscape in awe.

Tsuna nodded. "Yes. Everything you see from the hills over there to the mountains…" He pointed towards the scenery. "They're all the shrine's restricted grounds. Apparently, this part of Namimori has been belonging to the shrine since the ancient times…say the legends…" he explained.

… _say the legends huh… The last part sounds convincing. This area belonged to this shrine because the legends said so. How ridiculous!_ "…is what you're thinking, isn't it?" Tsukuyomi said to the blonde with a playful smirk and narrowed eyes.

Giotto blinked in confusion before the raven's words were absorbed in his brain. "… Seriously, stopping reading my head, Tsukuyomi…" he stated blankly. Though, his comment didn't really sound like the way the boy put it.

Tsukuyomi shrugged. "I wasn't. It's all written on your face, Blondie. You're quite easy to read."

The blonde felt like being defeated by this. He was always told that he's unpredictable by most allied families, enemies and outsiders. This was the first time that someone was able to tell how obvious he was. Wait… was he really that readable? If so, then it would be very troublesome during his work in the future.

"You need not to be concerned. You're not really that transparent." Giotto was surprised by this when Tsuna spoke up. "It's only that… you look very obvious around us for some reason."

The blonde stared confusedly at the young brunet. "Sorry, Tsuna. You kinda lost me there."

Tsukuyomi snorted. "You don't need to understand any of this, Blondie! Keep your nose out of our matter!"

"Nii-san!" Tsuna gave his brother a warning look which shushed the black-haired boy as he continued to tend to the plants while clicking in tongue in annoyance.

"Anyhow, Giotto Vongola!" the man cringed when he was addressed formally by the elder boy. "I don't know what your real motives towards our mother are, but we'll be keeping our eyes on you!"

The boy stood up and walked over to the blonde, standing sternly in front of the older man while glaring daggers at him. "Don't expect any mercy from us if you dare to hurt her in any way because we won't be merciful." He snarled threateningly at the man before he walked past and away from him.

Giotto deadpanned as he was left wordless. No matter how he tried to explain, they still wouldn't fully believe him. That…he had also given up already. It's starting to sound more like a pain to him now.

Tsuna watched quietly as his brother threatened the grown man and walked away. "Nii-san, do you mind turning the water on?" He asked his brother who only nodded and headed to the water tap.

The brunet then attached the hoses that he brought with him while stealing a glance at the blank looking blonde. "Giotto-san, don't mind my brother. He's just being the usual overprotective jerk." He signaled his brother to turn on the tap.

"We have no right to judge you nor do you have the right to judge us either." He quoted. "You're not a bad person, but…" He turned to look at the man with a nonchalant smile.

"To tell a lie is easy. To cover truths with fake masks and to betray someone is not so difficult either…and, the most honest person can unexpectedly become the one with the most lies. So, we apologize if we act too thoughtlessly around you because of our deep concerns for our family."

Giotto could only nod at the brunet's statement. He couldn't deny what the boy had just said, but the quote kinda hit him hard in his chest. 'How troublesome…'

Tsuna blinked when he realized there weren't any water coming out from the pipe. He held the hose up and tried shaking it a bit. "Hah…strange…" He murmured with a raised brow.

"What is it, Tsuna?" asked the man when he noticed the boy examining the hose that he was holding.

"I was going to water the fields but… why…?" He turned to his brother who was working on the field beside the tap. "Nii-san! Have you turned the water tap on yet?"

Tsukuyomi stared questioningly back at his brother. "I already did just now."

"Then, how come the water is not…" His eyes slowly followed the trace of the hose and landed on the source of the problem.

"I'll try turning it on to the end."

He instantly wiped his head towards his brother. "Nii-san, don't! Giotto-san is-"

Giotto was the one who's confused this time. "Ah, what about me?"

"Giotto-san, don't move your feet yet! You're stepping on-"

Too late. The blonde stepped to the side only to realize that he was standing on the hose, blocking the water from the tap. As soon as he stepped aside from the hose, water immediately burst from the end of the hose, spraying around uncontrollably because of the pressure from being blocked.

"Uwahhh! Wah! It's freezing!" Giotto shrieked when he was splashed by the bursting water along with Tsuna and Tsukuyomi.

"Nii-san! Turn it off! Turn it off!"

"Wait! Where is the tap? Shit! I'm drenched!"

* * *

 **Some times after that…**

Giotto found himself sitting inside the living room alongside with Tsukuyomi and Tsuna while wiping his damped hair with a towel. "In the end, I'm only causing more troubles instead of helping out…" He murmured sadly with his head dropped.

"Well, I see that you're reflecting in your carelessness, Blondie." Tsukuyomi hissed at the blonde, only to be smacked by his brother.

After the small messy incident, Tsukuyomi was able to turn the tap off and the three of them got drenched with water as a result. Tsuna suggested that they should stop the garden and go dry themselves so they would avoid catching colds. Tsukuyomi and Giotto agreed and the three went back inside the house from the front entrance.

Tsukina was surprised when she saw the state the three was in. Tsuna explained what had happened to them and she told them to head to the bathroom take a shower. The three of them were able to shower at the same time thanks to the large public like bathroom with a big bath tub. Damn, it even has an open bath. After that, Tsukina handed him a spare clothes while the wet ones were being washed. When he was done with changing, he was told to wait in the living room with the two boys since dinner was almost ready.

Giotto looked down at the spare clothes that he was wearing; a simple outfit consisted of white haori and a pair of pinstripe hakamas. He sighed draping the towel over his shoulder. "I really am a klutz…"

Tsuna sweat dropped. "Giotto-san, your sulking is starting to make me irritated a bit…" He told the man. Tsukuyomi scowled.

"Leave him be! It's his fault in the first place." The two boys were in their night pajamas.

"Nii-san, you're really quick to blame someone when something is not your fault…" Tsuna grumbled.

The raven's eyes twitched in annoyance. "What was that? Care to say it again?"

Tsuna stared blankly back at his brother. "Do I need to remind you how it feels like to be told of what you did wrong, dear brother?"

The older boy's mouth immediately snapped shut when his brother said this. When his brother smiled sweetly at him, he shook his head, saying 'NO!'

The blonde sighed. How carefree of them…

"Giotto-san, is the spare clothes okay with you?"

He stiffened when Tsukina entered the room. Realized that she might have scared him, she immediately apologized. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."

Giotto shook his head. "No, it's okay, Sawada-san. I was kinda spaced out. Nothing to worry." He said with a sheepish grin. "And, yes. They're fine. Though, it was quite hard to put it on since I'm not used to wearing these."

"I apologize. It would have been nice if we had normal clothes, but… I only have traditional ones…" She murmured with an apologetic smile.

"No. No. Don't apologize, Sawada-san. They're very comfortable. In fact, I'm really sorry." Giotto bowed slightly at her. "I caused troubles for you and had to borrow some clothes, too. I'm sorry."

Tsukina smiled slightly. "It's okay, Giotto-san. You were drenched so it's only natural that you should change."

Tsukuyomi scoffed and crossed his arms. "The one who you should apologize is us, Blondie." He mumbled under his breath which was heard by everyone in the room.

"Nii-san…"

Giotto chuckled. "Of course, I should. I'm sorry for stepping on the hose."

The black-haired said nothing and simply looked away. "Tsukuyomi, that wasn't very nice." His mother pointed and he responded with a quiet 'sorry'.

Out of nowhere, small growls could be heard in the room from three particular people's stomach; Giotto, Tsukuyomi and Tsuna. The three's face flushed red in embarrassment as they placed his hand around their grumbling stomach.

This caused the black-haired woman to giggle slightly. "Fufu. Dinner's ready. Shall we head to the kitchen?" she asked.

"Hai!" replied her two sons before they stood up and ran past her, quickly marching towards the kitchen. Tsukina gestured Giotto to follow and he did as told and left for the kitchen with her. As they got closer to the destination, Giotto could feel the tasty smell of curry hit his nose and it made him become hungrier. Luckily for him, his stomach did translate his thought for him.

They finally came to a stop at the end of the corridor. Tsukina slide open the door on her left side. When they entered the room, Giotto was welcomed with the sight of traditional Japanese styled kitchen in contrast of his mansion's western styled ones. All the equipment in the room, except for the refrigerator, the microwave and the oven, were all traditionally Japanese-styled.

In the middle of the room was a table was the simple yet mouthwatering dinner that Tsukina had prepared for the night, curry rice. Tsukuyomi and his siblings had already taken their places in their seats around the table.

Giotto sat down in an empty seat between Tsuna and Tsukuyomi while Tsukina also took her seat across him. Once they were all seated…

"Ittadakimasu!" the three siblings said; clasping their hands together before they started digging in. Giotto watched as they happily ate their food and he followed what they just did. "Ittadakimasu."

His eyes brightened when he took the first bite of the juicy curry rice. "It's delicious!" He beamed, overwhelmed by the taste of the food.

"I'm glad to know that it suits your taste." Tsukina said with a happy giggle as she watched her kids and the guest enjoying the dinner. Her eyes softened at the thought of how her efforts had paid off before she also started to eat her portion as well.

During the dinner, Giotto watched and listened as Tsukina talked with her children about how their day was. Tsukiuyomi was the first to reply with complaints about homework that their class was assigned to and about how they usually hung out with Hayato and the others. He seemed annoyed when he mentioned how he was teased by Bianchi and Mukuro.

"Your reaction is what makes them wanting to tease you, Nii-san." Tsuna pointed out. "If you don't want them to continue, you should just ignore what they say. You know that they don't seriously mean it yet you take them seriously."

"That's because I can't stand those damn smug smiles of theirs!" his brother growled in annoyance.

Giotto sweat dropped. 'Here, too…?'

Tsukina smiled as she watched her two sons arguing and turned to her quiet daughter. "What about you, Tsubame? How was school?"

Tsubame placed down her spoon before she replied her mother's question. "Today, I get to talk more with Kyoko and Chrome…" She murmured quietly. "They asked me if they could come and visit sometimes…" She paused. "And if I could visit them, too…"

She raised her head to glance at Tsukina. "Kaa-san, can I…they…?" She stuttered slightly not sure of what she should ask first.

Tsukina understood completely what the young blonde wanted to say and gently patted her head. "Of course, Tsubame. They're welcome to visit anytime they want and you can also visit them as well. It's been a while since I've seen them." She told the girl. "But, be sure to let me or their family know first, okay?"

Tsubame smiled and nodded. "Hai."

"And, Tsukuyomi, Tsuna, let's leave your lectures for later, alright?" she said, turning to her two boys who stopped glaring at one another and nodded obediently.

Giotto couldn't help but smiled. They were such a warm and lively family, although the two boys seemed to butt head with one another more often. It reminded him of when he and his family during their meal times. His family's dinner only became lively thanks to his guardians and their family.

Prior to his guardians, however, he rarely has experienced a warm family meal time like this. His eyes narrowed slightly remembering those times when he was alone in the enormous dining room without his parents or brother. He shook the thought off. This wasn't the time to have those sad thoughts… not there were other people around him.

After they all finished their dinner, the kids offered to help their mother to help her clean up the table.

"It's ok. I got this." She told them. "You all have homework that needs your attention, don't you? And, Tsubame hasn't taken a shower yet either."

"But, Kaa-san…" Tsukuyomi protested but Giotto cut in.

"Then, how about I lend a hand instead? That way, we don't need to argue about this any further?" He knew that he would have to wait with the kids in the living room if he hadn't asked this. No way. He had had enough blunt remarks from Tsukuyomi for the day and he didn't want to engage with another awkward situation.

Tsukuyomi scowled. "Like hell, we'd let you! You'd only cause more mess for us to clean up like earlier, Blondie!"

Ah… The water pipe incident… Did he have to remind him about that? "I won't mess up again." Giotto said. "I'll be careful. I'll be more careful so…" He turned to look at Tsukina with a slight pleading in his eyes.

Tsukina blinked staring at him before she huffed. "Alright. You three run along. Giotto-san says he'll help so you don't need to worry."

Tsukuyomi's shoulders tensed. "Kaa-san!" His voice raised slightly in protest. There was no way in hell he would leave their mother in the room alone with a man they barely knew! No way! He turned to look at his younger brother when the brunet placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Nii-san…" Tsuna gave his brother a look before shaking his head. Tsukuyomi knew what that meant, but he was still hesitated.

"Gitto-san is not a bad person, Nii-san…" Their sister backed up for Tsuna, giving the elder one the same message. Tsukuyomi clicked his tongue in frustration. He lost against his two siblings.

"Then, we'll be in the living room doing our homework. Tsubame can join us later after your bath." Tsuna told his siblings and mother. "Let's go, Nii-san."

Giotto trembled when Tsukuyomi shot him a warning glare before Tsuna dragged him out of the kitchen with Tsubame, leaving Giotto and Tsukina alone.

After the kids left, Giotto voluntarily gathered up the empty plates from the table and placed them in the washing basin before he started tidying the table. Tsukina watched how Giotto handled everything carefully while she was washing the pots followed by the dishes. Probably, he was trying not to cause more troubles for her. She chuckled slightly at the thought.

The Don turn to the black-haired woman with a questioning look when he heard her light chuckles. "Umm…Sawadaa-san, did I do something wrong?"

Tsukina blinked then shook her head. "No, of course not, Giotto. You're quite helpful. I'm just a little…amazed by how attentive you are." She said, while continuing with the cleaning. "You don't see this kind of pure gentle people."

Giotto couldn't bite back the guilt he had felt. She had implied that he was a good person even after what had happened last night. Maybe he really was overthinking too much. But, then again, he still couldn't let go this whether she took that into account or not.

Tsukina had finished cleaning the last dish when she noticed Giotto approached her with fidgeted steps. "Giotto-san?"

"I'm really sorry, Sawada-san!" Giotto exclaimed as he lowered his head in front of the black-haired. "About the night before…I know I was quite nervous, but it was still very rude of me. I'm sorry for turning down your invitation without considering it first. I'm so sorry!" It almost sounded like he was devastatingly shouting, asking for forgiveness although he didn't intend to put it that way.

The lady stared blankly at him in confusion. She was dumbfounded by his behavior for a moment before she noticed his shoulders shook slightly. Her eyes' softened when she could finally comprehend everything. She shook the water off her hands before wiping them clean with a cloth and turning to face the blonde who still had his head down.

"Giotto-san, please raise your head." She said, making Giotto glanced at her. "You are indeed an honest man." She remarked. "Not many people take this small matter into consideration these days. I'm surprised you were bothered by it."

The blonde gulped. "I don't know why… I feel so bad that I can't…. I can't help but wanting to reflect on my own actions…even if it doesn't bother you." He murmured as he stood straight, his eyes glued to the ground.

"I didn't really mind about it, Giotto-san." She told him. "Actually… when you did that, it kinda reminded me of my old self…"

Giotto tilted his head to the side. "Your old self?"

"I used to do the same thing as you did, Giotto-san, but I've done it many times; turning down people's offer of gratitude, being inconsiderate, and many other rude things."

He was surprised when he was told this for she didn't look like someone who would do such things. She's a kind person. "Even having done that many times, I've never give a care of what others thought of me or how they were hurt or sadden… Now, I know how it feels. Honestly, it hurt but, well…let's just say it's my karma."" She continued with a nervous smile.

Giotto's eyes narrowed slightly. "But, even so…I…" What? What was he going to say? He didn't dare to finish his sentence. Why was he like this when he's with her?

Tsukina huffed. "Even so, you've already reflected for what you did, Giotto-san. You've helped out my children and me." She smiled. "And, you joined us for dinner. I think that makes us even, don't you think?"

Giotto chuckled at how she playfully said this. "Well, I can't say it doesn't…Despite having just met me, you sure do trust me a lot, Sawada-san…"

Tsukina's smile dropped slightly as well as her gaze. "Well...the most honest person can unknowingly become the one with the most lies…" Giotto cringed. "But, however, I believe everyone deserves the same respect and it shouldn't be a problem, right?"

The blonde vigorously shook his head. "No, not at all!" He scratched his cheek sheepishly.

A small smile returned on her lips. "Naïve…and honest…yet…" She murmured softly. "How typical of people like you…"

Giotto raised a brow questioningly. What did she mean by that? Before he could ask her the question, she walked over to the other side of the room to the door.

"It seems like the laundry's done. You can go wait in the living room while I'll go to fetch your clothes." She said.

"Hai." Giotto nodded promptly and left the kitchen; heading to the living room. He was glad he didn't get lost on his ways. Even though he left, her words were still lingering in his thought. He couldn't shake it off.

He arrived in front of the living before he could get deeper in his thought. He slide the door opened and peeked inside.

"Nii-chan, I think I got the wrong answer." Tsubame murmured, showing her brother her notebook.

"Uhh, Tsubame, that one…if you redo the middle part, it'll be solved." said Tsuna as he took a quick look at the blonde's problem before turning back to his brother.

"Nii-san, I've kept telling you that you're doing it the wrong way! You're using the wrong word!"

"Then, which word am I supposed to use?" Tsukuyomi growled almost snapping his pencil in half.

"How about you fix the spelling of that word first?" Tsuna was stuck between his homework and helping his siblings.

Giotto deadpanned. 'Must be hard for you…Tsunayoshi…' At least Tsubame was more concentrated in her studying than their eldest brother luckily for the burnet.

Tsukuyomi took a notice of the Vongola Don's presence. "Oh hey, Blondie. Finished with the cleanings? You didn't mess up again, did you?" He asked with a sneer.

Giotto's eyes twitched. He was starting to get annoyed by the raven's bratty attitudes. "Yes, I made extra care not to cause any more mess, Tsukuyomi-san."

"Nii-san, you're going too far! Enough with it already!" Tsuna warned his brother with a glare. "I know that you don't behave around someone you hardly know, but this is getting out of hands. If you got any problems, you should just say it!"

Giotto and Tsukuyomi were stunned at the brunet's outburst. It seemed like Tsuna's lost his temper but he tried not to show it too much because he didn't want to scare Tsubame.

The older blonde gulped. ' A dark side…I've witnessed a sweet boy's dark side…' He uttered to himself. Tsukuyomi and Tsuna were fixed in a glaring contest with either of them refusing to back down.

After a while, Tsukuyomi finally turned away from his brother's menacing look with a huff. "Oi, Blondie, did you apologize to Mother yet?" He asked.

Giotto only nodded dumbly at the boy's question. "Yes, I did…while helping her clean…"

"Tch…That's why I don't like you…" The boy's eyes narrowed as he grumbled.

"Pardon?"

"People like you…always pretend to be all nice and slowly get close to Mother. And always always…ends up causing troubles for her…" The boy rumbled on. "I hate naïve people like you…"

'And, what am I supposed to do about that?' was what Giotto wanted to retort back in response, but he chose not to.

"Tsukuyomi, I think that's quite enough." Tsukina appeared beside the blonde without any warning; startling him.

"Sawada-san…" He noticed that she was carrying a small bag and a tray of hot drinks and snacks in her hands. She gave him an apologetic smile and walked into the room.

She knelt down beside her eldest son and set down the tray on the table. "I brought you guys some snacks and some hot milk." She told them. She then glanced at the black-haired boy. "Tsukuyomi?"

From the tone of her voice, Giotto could tell that she was displeased with his behavior. The boy lowered his head, not daring to face his mother.

She ruffled his hair gently. "What did I tell you about behaving in front of our guests?" She asked.

"…I'm sorry…" The boy murmured under his breath.

"The one who you should apologize is not me." She pointed towards the blonde standing beside the door. The boy stared at him with his red eyes piercing Giotto's golden orange ones. He bit his lip and turned away; a clear sign of refusal.

Tsukina sighed. The boy could be very difficult for her to handle. The temperature in the room seemed to have dropped a bit because of the confrontation. Giotto didn't like it. This was different from the warm atmosphere from earlier. He wanted it back.

"Sawada-san, it's okay. I don't mind, really." Giotto told the mother rubbing the back of his head. "I might really have done something to annoy Tsukuyomi. In that case, I'm at the wrong side, too."

He smiled sheepishly at her. "I think I should head back tonight. It's getting really late." He was hoping his absence could help easing the atmosphere a bit.

Tsukina stood up. "Then, I shall walk you to your car." She told him.

He stammered, waving his hands. "You don't need to do that. I've already bothered you and your family enough for today."

Tsukina shook her head. "I will see you off, Giotto-san, to make sure you can safely walk to your car." Her eyes narrowed slightly in guilt.

Giotto turned pale when he recalled the situation that evening when he was attacked by unknown forces on his way. He wouldn't want to experience that again. "W-Well…" He stuttered. "In that case, I'll be in your care, Sawada-san." He grinned.

The black-haired woman nodded before she stood beside the blonde man. "I will be right back after this. You can continue to finish your homework. And, Tsukuyomi…" The boy stiffened at the mention of his name.

"I believe you have already reflected on your actions." said Tsukina calmly. Her tone didn't sound like she was scolding her children like most mothers would do; Giotto noted. However, it was enough to make Tsukuyomi swallowed.

"Let's go, Giotto-san."

"Hai." When they were about to leave, Giotto stopped when he felt a tug on his shirt. He turned around and was surprised to see Tsubame standing in front of him.

The girl looked very nervous and …scared? Her hands trembled slightly as she held onto his shirt. "Please…" She said softly. "…Don't be mad at Nii-san."

Giotto was taken aback by what he heard."Nii-san is a good boy. He is a nice person but he is not very honest about it…" This girl, she was trying to defend her brother.

Tsukuyomi watched in shock as his sister stood before the blonde man. He felt guilty for having to let her do this. Tsuna nudged his brother as he pointed to the man. He sighed and gave in.

On the other hand, Giotto recovered from his surprise and knelt down to the girl's eye level. His eyes softened as he placed his hand on her head. "Don't worry, Tsubame. I understand." He rubbed her head gently. "I'm not mad at your brother at all, ok?" He told her with an assuring smile.

Tsubame's eyes brightened at this. He knew that she was relief to know that her brother wasn't hated. He chuckled slightly. These triplets, they really cared about each other.

"Arigatou, Giotto-san."

Giotto's eyes widened in shock. She smiled! She genuinely smiled! This was probably the first time that he had seen her smile ever since he had met them. He was relief. This was the sign that she was finally comfortable around him.

"Hey, Blondie!" He flinched when Tsukuyomi appeared beside his sister. He gritted his teeth; hesitating for a while before he uttered…

"I'm sorry for my behavior… For being a brat, alright?"

Giotto chuckled when he noticed a tint of pink flush on the boy's cheek. So he had this soft side to him as well.

"I-I'm only doing this because I don't want Tsubame standing up for my stupid mistake! Don't get the wrong idea, Blondie! I still don't like you!"

"I get it. I get it. Apology accepted! I hope we'll get along well, Tsukuyomi." The Blonde chirped, playfully ruffling the boy's hair much to Tsukuyomi's dismay.

"H-Hey! Cut it out, Blondie! Don't get so familiar with me! Oi!" Tsukuyomi growled in embarrassment as he tried to push the blonde's hand away.

Giotto's chuckles turned to light laugh at this. Tsubame also giggled at her brother's reaction. Tsukina and Tsuna smiled gently. It seemed like there wouldn't be any more troubles. The Vongola Boss was glad that the warm-hearted air had finally returned to the house.

After that, Giotto bid 'Good Night' to the kids and left the house alongside with Tsukina.

"Arigatou, Giotto-san." Tsukina said while they were walking past the woods. "You were trying to stop the small conflict among my children and me, were you not?"

"Ah…aha ha…was I found out?" Giotto grinned as he scratched his head. "I'm glad to see that everything's sorted out."

Tsukina smiled. "Don't worry, Giotto-san. Even if there were small fights from time to time, we were always able to resolve it peacefully… Although, this is the first time someone has lent us a hand."

"It's an honor to know that…" Giotto sighed. _…although I was the main cause of it…_ He added quietly to himself.

Tsukina noticed this but didn't say anything. As they walked past the forest, Giotto could see that they're getting near to the stairs. Giotto's breathe shortened each time he took a step near the stairways. Frankly, he would like to avoid this path if it was possible. However, it wasn't.

Luckily for him, nothing had happened. Giotto was on guard when he followed Tsukina down the stairs behind her. Nothing. There was nothing at all. His Hyper intuition was calm and warned no sign of danger. No force that would pin him down or even that nerve wrecking feeling that he had first had. It's like everything from before was a lie. He didn't know if he should rejoice or be irritated at this.

'It's not like I want to be tortured again…'

Thus, choice 1; he rejoiced.

They had finally reached the end of the stairs and walked through the two gates. Giotto could spot his car from where he was standing.

"Giotto-san." Tsukina handed him the small bag she was holding. "Your clothes. I've washed and ironed them."

Only then that Giotto realized that he was still wearing the clothes that he had lent from her. He flailed his arms a bit. "Ahh…Err… Sawada-san… These clothes… should I have changed them?" he asked.

Tsukina shook her head. "It's fine, Giotto-san. You can keep it. There isn't anyone wearing it anyway…" For a moment, she looked sad.

The blonde immediately realized that these clothes were her husband's from her look. "Is it really okay? I mean…these clothes…"

"It's ok. It's better to use them rather them leaving them without putting them in good use for years."

"Well…then, I'll take good care of them." Giotto said gratefully. "Thank you, Sawada-san."

Tsukina nodded. "Oh and by the way, I put some packs of herbs inside that bag." She pointed to the bag he was holding.

"Herbs?" He looked inside to observe the small bags with leaves in the one he was holding.

"Yes. They're good for clearing your minds when you're resting, and also, they can prevent colds, too." She explained, listed off some of the effects.

Giotto stared at the medicinal leaves in wonder. 'Heh…' Then, something hit him. These herbs…they were the same ones that he drank when he visited Cozart. He could clearly remember a certain woman's phrase from back them.

"… _ **I have little knowledge about them unlike someone else…"**_

That someone else…could it be Tsukina? It could be since Cozart said that they were close friends. The scary lady and the sweet lady… He couldn't imagine what kind of close friends they were?

"Thank you, Sawada-san. I'll be sure to share them with everyone else." He smiled gently at her with mixed emotions of happiness and gratitude.

Tsukina stiffened for a moment when she saw the Don's gentle smile. The feeling of nostalgia filled up her chest. She paused her lips to a thin line before she stepped forward.

"Giotto-san…" She motioned her hand towards him. "Can you lend me your forehead?"

Giotto blinked, confused by her request. "Hai…" But, he did it anyway. He stood in front of her and leaned down slightly so that her hands could reach him.

She held up her right palm towards his face. "Can you close your eyes for a while?"

Again, Giotto wasn't sure why he listened to her but he did it anyway. His intuition was telling him that she wasn't planning anything fishy, but something did inside him wasn't very pleased with what she was about to do. But, why?

His shoulders tensed when he felt her fingertip against his forehead. Her finger…it was very warm and soft as it trialed along the line that she drew on his forehead. He could make out two small lines on either side near his eyebrow, and then…a small sensation at the middle of the line…?

"Done…" He heard her huffed once she pulled her finger away.

"You can open your eyes now, Giotto-san."

"Hai-hieeee!" He yelped and backed away when he realized how close their face was when he opened his eyes. His entire face turned brilliant red and his heart was racing rapidly at this. 'Uwahhhhhhh! So close…'

Tsukina didn't seem to bother by it…or rather…she didn't notice about this since she was staring at him with confused eyes.

Giotto uttered sheepishly. "Ahh…just now, what...?"

"A spell…" She replied. "It's a protecting spell so that you won't encounter any danger on your way home."

He tilted his head to the side. "Protecting…huh…" He touched his forehead in wonder. He responded with a cheeky grin.

"Thank you, Tsukina-san. You've given me quite a lot today."

She giggled. "You've said that quite a lot today, Giotto-san; the phrase 'Thank You'." She pointed out.

Giotto chuckled at her statement. "That's because I have reasons to be grateful of." Then, he bowed his head slightly. "Well then, I should head back before the others make a fuss. It's a pleasure being able to help you today, Sawada-san."

"Same here." Tsukina responded with a bow of her own. "Be careful on your way home, Giotto-san."

"Hai." With that, he got into his car and started the engine. "Sawadaa-san, Oyasumi." He bit with a smile and a wave for one last time before he drove away.

Tsukina watched as the car slowly disappeared from her sight. "Oyasuminasai, Giotto-san." She murmured. As she continued to stand there for a moment, there was a gust of wind blown softly past her.

She sighed and tucked a few bangs of her black lock behind her ears. "Today, both you and Tsukuyomi are quite handfuls, you know that?"

She walked towards the shrine gate and placed her hand on one of the wooden tori.

"If you had wakened up, you should have let me know." She spoke, particularly to no one from third person's point of view.

Another gust of wind blew past her again, as if responding to her. She let out a warm smile.

"Hai…Tadaima, Heiwamori…"

* * *

 **Yayyyyyyy! Finally! Finally finished with this chapter! *Throws arms in the air* Actually, this chapter is thelongest chapter I've written so far, and the word count is over 10000?! *shocked* There are many things I wanted to add when Giotto was helping Tsukina and the kids though I had to cut them out since I don't want to make this longer than it already is... And also, damn...although I feel bad for Cozart, I really love to make Ellen looked embarrassed when he teased her. lol And, here's the translations for the small whispering between Tsuna and Tsubame.**

 *** Nii-chan, karada... daijoubu desu ga? - Brother, is your body okay?**

 ***Daijoubu. Goshinpai naku. - I'm okay. Don't worry about it.**

 **There are other parts where I used Romanjis but I'm not gonna translate them all since they're the words that we're quite familliar with. But, if you have troubles with them, you can let me know**. **And also, I'm deciding to change the way the kids called their mother to 'Mother' which means 'Kaa-san' in Japan, though I prefer the latter more. Should I change it or just leave it this way?  
**

 **Either way, for the next chapter, I'm planning to write either about the Sawada's household having a day out together with Vongola and Shimon Family or individual stories for the kids and their parents. Hmmm...well, I haven't decided between these two yet. Either way, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and see you you again in the next one. oh and, as usual, review plz!**


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